Configure the root Account lock for Failed Password Attempts via pam_tally2
An XCCDF Rule
Description
This rule configures the system to lock out the root
account after a number of
incorrect login attempts using pam_tally2.so
.
Rationale
By limiting the number of failed logon attempts, the risk of unauthorized system access via user password guessing, also known as brute-forcing, is reduced. Limits are imposed by locking the account.
- ID
- xccdf_org.ssgproject.content_rule_accounts_passwords_pam_tally2_deny_root
- Severity
- Medium
- References
- Updated
Remediation - Shell Script
# Remediation is applicable only in certain platforms
if rpm --quiet -q pam; then
if grep -qP '^\s*auth\s+'"required"'\s+pam_tally2.so\s.*\bonerr=fail\b' "/etc/pam.d/login"; then
sed -i -E --follow-symlinks 's/(.*auth.*'"required"'.*pam_tally2.so.*)\sonerr=fail=?[[:alnum:]]*(.*)/\1\2/g' "/etc/pam.d/login"
fi
Remediation - Ansible
- name: Gather the package facts
package_facts:
manager: auto
tags:
- CCE-91281-6
- NIST-800-53-AC-7(b)