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Ensure users' .netrc Files are not group or world accessible

An XCCDF Rule

Description

While the system administrator can establish secure permissions for users' .netrc files, the users can easily override these. This rule ensures every .netrc file or directory under the home directory related to an interactive user is not group or world accessible

Rationale

.netrc files may contain unencrypted passwords that may be used to attack other systems. Note: While the complete removal of .netrc files is recommended, if any are required on the system, secure permissions must be applied.

ID
xccdf_org.ssgproject.content_rule_accounts_users_netrc_file_permissions
Severity
Medium
References
Updated



Remediation - Ansible

- name: Get all local users from /etc/passwd
  ansible.builtin.getent:
    database: passwd
    split: ':'
  tags:
  - accounts_users_netrc_file_permissions

Remediation - Shell Script


for user in $(awk -F':' '{ if ($3 >= 1000 && $3 != 65534) print $1 }' /etc/passwd); do
    home_dir=$(getent passwd "$user" | cut -d: -f6)
    find "${home_dir}/.netrc" -exec chmod 0600 {} \;
done