Information
The vCenter server Native Key Provider must be backed up with a strong password.
GROUP ID: V-258960RULE ID: SV-258960r1051428
The vCenter Native Key Provider feature was introduced in 7.0 U2 and acts as a key provider for encryption-based capabilities such as encrypted virtual machines without requiring an external KMS solution. When enabling this feature, a backup must be taken, which is a PKCS12 formatted file. If no password is provided during the backup process, this presents the opportunity for this to be used maliciously and compromise the environment.
NOTE: Nessus has not performed this check. Please review the benchmark to ensure target compliance.
Solution
From the vSphere Client, go to Host and Clusters.
Select a vCenter Server >> Configure >> Security >> Key Providers.
Select the Native Key Provider, click "Back-up", and check the box "Protect Native Key Provider data with password".
Provide a strong password and click "Back up key provider".
Delete any previous backups that were not protected with a password.