RHEL 9 /etc/passwd- file must have mode 0644 or less permissive to prevent unauthorized access.
An XCCDF Rule
Description
<VulnDiscussion>The "/etc/passwd-" file is a backup file of "/etc/passwd", and as such, contains information about the users that are configured on the system. Protection of this file is critical for system security.</VulnDiscussion><FalsePositives></FalsePositives><FalseNegatives></FalseNegatives><Documentable>false</Documentable><Mitigations></Mitigations><SeverityOverrideGuidance></SeverityOverrideGuidance><PotentialImpacts></PotentialImpacts><ThirdPartyTools></ThirdPartyTools><MitigationControl></MitigationControl><Responsibility></Responsibility><IAControls></IAControls>
- ID
- SV-257896r991589_rule
- Severity
- Medium
- References
- Updated
Remediation - Manual Procedure
Change the mode of the file "/etc/passwd-" to "0644" by running the following command:
$ sudo chmod 0644 /etc/passwd-