UCF STIG Viewer Logo
Changes are coming to https://stigviewer.com. Take our survey to help us understand your usage and how we can better serve you in the future.
Take Survey

The Ubuntu operating system must not have accounts configured with blank or null passwords.


Overview

Finding ID Version Rule ID IA Controls Severity
V-75479 UBTU-16-010250 SV-90159r1_rule High
Description
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.
STIG Date
Canonical Ubuntu 16.04 LTS Security Technical Implementation Guide 2018-07-18

Details

Check Text ( C-75183r1_chk )
To verify that null passwords cannot be used, run the following command:

# grep pam_unix.so /etc/pam.d/* | grep nullok
If this produces any output, it may be possible to log on with accounts with empty passwords.

If null passwords can be used, this is a finding.
Fix Text (F-82107r1_fix)
If an account is configured for password authentication but does not have an assigned password, it may be possible to log on to the account without authenticating.

Remove any instances of the "nullok" option in files under "/etc/pam.d/" to prevent logons with empty passwords.