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CIS Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 Benchmark for Level 1 - Workstation

Rules and Groups employed by this XCCDF Profile

  • Verify Permissions on SSH Server Private *_key Key Files

    SSH server private keys - files that match the <code>/etc/ssh/*_key</code> glob, have to have restricted permissions. If those files are owned by the <code>root</code> user and the <code>root</code...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Verify Permissions on SSH Server Public *.pub Key Files

    To properly set the permissions of /etc/ssh/*.pub, run the command:
    $ sudo chmod 0644 /etc/ssh/*.pub
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Configure OpenSSH Server if Necessary

    If the system needs to act as an SSH server, then certain changes should be made to the OpenSSH daemon configuration file <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config</code>. The following recommendations can be app...
    Group
  • Set SSH Client Alive Count Max

    The SSH server sends at most <code>ClientAliveCountMax</code> messages during a SSH session and waits for a response from the SSH client. The option <code>ClientAliveInterval</code> configures time...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Set SSH Client Alive Interval

    SSH allows administrators to set a network responsiveness timeout interval. After this interval has passed, the unresponsive client will be automatically logged out. <br> <br> To se...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Disable Host-Based Authentication

    SSH's cryptographic host-based authentication is more secure than <code>.rhosts</code> authentication. However, it is not recommended that hosts unilaterally trust one another, even within an organ...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Disable SSH Access via Empty Passwords

    Disallow SSH login with empty passwords. The default SSH configuration disables logins with empty passwords. The appropriate configuration is used if no value is set for <code>PermitEmptyPasswords<...
    Rule High Severity
  • Disable SSH Support for .rhosts Files

    SSH can emulate the behavior of the obsolete rsh command in allowing users to enable insecure access to their accounts via <code>.rhosts</code> files. <br> The default SSH configuration disables su...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Disable SSH Root Login

    The root user should never be allowed to login to a system directly over a network. To disable root login via SSH, add or correct the following line in <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config</code>: <pre>Pe...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Do Not Allow SSH Environment Options

    Ensure that users are not able to override environment variables of the SSH daemon. <br> The default SSH configuration disables environment processing. The appropriate configuration is used if no v...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Enable PAM

    UsePAM Enables the Pluggable Authentication Module interface. If set to “yes” this will enable PAM authentication using ChallengeResponseAuthentication and PasswordAuthentication in addition to PAM...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Enable SSH Warning Banner

    To enable the warning banner and ensure it is consistent across the system, add or correct the following line in <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config</code>: <pre>Banner /etc/issue.net</pre> Another sectio...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Limit Users' SSH Access

    By default, the SSH configuration allows any user with an account to access the system. There are several options available to limit which users and group can access the system via SSH. It is recom...
    Rule Unknown Severity
  • Ensure SSH LoginGraceTime is configured

    The <code>LoginGraceTime</code> parameter to the SSH server specifies the time allowed for successful authentication to the SSH server. The longer the Grace period is the more open unauthenticated ...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Set SSH Daemon LogLevel to VERBOSE

    The <code>VERBOSE</code> parameter configures the SSH daemon to record login and logout activity. To specify the log level in SSH, add or correct the following line in <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config<...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Set SSH authentication attempt limit

    The <code>MaxAuthTries</code> parameter specifies the maximum number of authentication attempts permitted per connection. Once the number of failures reaches half this value, additional failures ar...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Set SSH MaxSessions limit

    The <code>MaxSessions</code> parameter specifies the maximum number of open sessions permitted from a given connection. To set MaxSessions edit <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config</code> as follows: <pre>Ma...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Ensure SSH MaxStartups is configured

    The MaxStartups parameter specifies the maximum number of concurrent unauthenticated connections to the SSH daemon. Additional connections will be dropped until authentication succeeds or the Login...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Use Only FIPS 140-2 Validated Ciphers

    Limit the ciphers to those algorithms which are FIPS-approved. Counter (CTR) mode is also preferred over cipher-block chaining (CBC) mode. The following line in <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config</code> de...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Ensure Authentication Required for Single User Mode

    Single user mode is used for recovery when the system detects an issue during boot or by manual selection from the bootloader.
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Configure Firewalld to Restrict Loopback Traffic

    Configure <code>firewalld</code> to restrict loopback traffic to the <code>lo</code> interface. The loopback traffic must be trusted by assigning the <code>lo</code> interface to the <code>firewal...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Configure Firewalld to Trust Loopback Traffic

    Assign loopback interface to the <code>firewalld</code> <code>trusted</code> zone in order to explicitly allow the loopback traffic in the system. To configure <code>firewalld</c...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Verify Permissions and Ownership of Old Passwords File

    To properly set the owner of <code>/etc/security/opasswd</code>, run the command: <pre>$ sudo chown root /etc/security/opasswd </pre> To properly set the group owner of <code>/etc/security/opasswd...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Verify Group Who Owns /etc/shells File

    To properly set the group owner of /etc/shells, run the command:
    $ sudo chgrp root /etc/shells
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Verify Who Owns /etc/shells File

    To properly set the owner of /etc/shells, run the command:
    $ sudo chown root /etc/shells 
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Verify Permissions on /etc/shells File

    To properly set the permissions of /etc/shells, run the command:
    $ sudo chmod 0644 /etc/shells
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Ensure that /etc/cron.allow exists

    The file /etc/cron.allow should exist and should be used instead of /etc/cron.deny.
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Remove ftp Package

    FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is a traditional and widely used standard tool for transferring files between a server and clients over a network, especially where no authentication is necessary (perm...
    Rule Low Severity
  • Use Only Strong Key Exchange algorithms

    Limit the Key Exchange to strong algorithms. The following line in <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config</code> demonstrates use of those: <pre>KexAlgorithms <xccdf-1.2:sub idref="xccdf_org.ssgproject.content...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Use Only Strong MACs

    Limit the MACs to strong hash algorithms. The following line in <code>/etc/ssh/sshd_config</code> demonstrates use of those MACs: <pre>MACs <xccdf-1.2:sub idref="xccdf_org.ssgproject.content_value_...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Ensure Local Login Warning Banner Is Configured Properly

    To configure the system local login warning banner edit the <code>/etc/issue</code> file. The contents of this file is displayed to users prior to login to local terminals. Replace the default text...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Ensure Remote Login Warning Banner Is Configured Properly

    To configure the system remote login warning banner edit the <code>/etc/issue.net</code> file. The contents of this file is displayed to users prior to login from remote connections. Replace the de...
    Rule Medium Severity
  • Ensure Message Of The Day Is Configured Properly

    To configure the system message of the day banner edit the <code>/etc/motd</code> file. Replace the default text with a message compliant with the local site policy. The message should not contain ...
    Rule Medium Severity

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