Skip to content

Ensure auditd Collects Information on Kernel Module Loading and Unloading

An XCCDF Rule

Description

To capture kernel module loading and unloading events, use following lines, setting ARCH to either b32 for 32-bit system, or having two lines for both b32 and b64 in case your system is 64-bit:

-a always,exit -F arch=ARCH -S init_module,finit_module,delete_module -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=unset -F key=modules
The place to add the lines depends on a way auditd daemon is configured. If it is configured to use the augenrules program (the default), add the lines to a file with suffix .rules in the directory /etc/audit/rules.d. If the auditd daemon is configured to use the auditctl utility, add the lines to file /etc/audit/audit.rules.

Rationale

The addition/removal of kernel modules can be used to alter the behavior of the kernel and potentially introduce malicious code into kernel space. It is important to have an audit trail of modules that have been introduced into the kernel.

ID
xccdf_org.ssgproject.content_rule_audit_rules_kernel_module_loading
Severity
Medium
References
Updated



Remediation - Ansible

- name: Gather the package facts
  package_facts:
    manager: auto
  tags:
  - CCE-27129-6
  - CJIS-5.4.1.1

Remediation - Shell Script

# Remediation is applicable only in certain platforms
if [ ! -f /.dockerenv ] && [ ! -f /run/.containerenv ] && rpm --quiet -q audit; then

# First perform the remediation of the syscall rule
# Retrieve hardware architecture of the underlying system
# Note: 32-bit and 64-bit kernel syscall numbers not always line up =>