Rule ID
SV-271616r1091560_rule
Version
V1R5
CCIs
Use of a complex password helps to increase the time and resources required to compromise the password. Password complexity, or strength, is a measure of the effectiveness of a password in resisting attempts at guessing and brute-force attacks. Password complexity is one factor of several that determines how long it takes to crack a password. The more complex the password, the greater the number of possible combinations that need to be tested before the password is compromised. Requiring digits makes password guessing attacks more difficult by ensuring a larger search space.
Verify that OL 9 enforces password complexity by requiring at least one numeric character. Check the value for "dcredit" with the following command: $ grep dcredit /etc/security/pwquality.conf /etc/security/pwquality.conf.d/*.conf /etc/security/pwquality.conf:dcredit = -1 If the value of "dcredit" is a positive number or is commented out, this is a finding.
Configure OL 9 to enforce password complexity by requiring at least one numeric character is used by setting the "dcredit" option. Add the following line to "/etc/security/pwquality.conf" (or modify the line to have the required value): dcredit = -1