RHEL-10-600750 - RHEL 10 must be configured so that user and group account administration utilities are configured to store only encrypted representations of passwords.

Information

Passwords must be protected at all times, and encryption is the standard method for protecting passwords. If passwords are not encrypted, they can be plainly read (i.e., clear text) and easily compromised. Passwords that are encrypted with a weak algorithm are no more protected than if they are kept in plain text.

This setting ensures user and group account administration utilities are configured to store only encrypted representations of passwords. Additionally, the "crypt_style" configuration option ensures the use of a strong hashing algorithm that makes password cracking attacks more difficult.

Solution

Configure RHEL 10 to use the SHA-512 algorithm for password hashing.

Add or change the following line in the "[default]" section of the "/etc/libuser.conf" file:

crypt_style = sha512

See Also

https://dl.dod.cyber.mil/wp-content/uploads/stigs/zip/U_RHEL_10_V1R1_STIG.zip

Item Details

Category: IDENTIFICATION AND AUTHENTICATION

References: 800-53|IA-5(1)(d), CAT|I, CCI|CCI-004062, Rule-ID|SV-281223r1166621_rule, STIG-ID|RHEL-10-600750, Vuln-ID|V-281223

Plugin: Unix

Control ID: 7300ba32fa58dfd580fac8226a267806154bdfb0c7ffc7d7b30b3ac6dc386174