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V-268322

CAT I (High)

RHEL 8 must not allow blank or null passwords in the system-auth file.

Rule ID

SV-268322r1017568_rule

STIG

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 Security Technical Implementation Guide

Version

V2R7

CCIs

CCI-000366

Discussion

If an account has an empty password, anyone could log on and run commands with the privileges of that account. Accounts with empty passwords should never be used in operational environments.

Check Content

To verify that null passwords cannot be used, run the following command:

$ sudo grep -i nullok /etc/pam.d/system-auth

If output is produced, this is a finding.

Fix Text

Remove any instances of the "nullok" option in the "/etc/pam.d/system-auth" file to prevent logons with empty passwords.

Note: Manual changes to the listed file may be overwritten by the "authselect" program.