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The Ubuntu operating system must enforce a minimum 15-character password length.


Overview

Finding ID Version Rule ID IA Controls Severity
V-219181 UBTU-18-010109 SV-219181r610963_rule Medium
Description
The shorter the password, the lower the number of possible combinations that need to be tested before the password is compromised. Password complexity, or strength, is a measure of the effectiveness of a password in resisting attempts at guessing and brute-force attacks. Password length is one factor of several that helps to determine strength and how long it takes to crack a password. Use of more characters in a password helps to exponentially increase the time and/or resources required to compromise the password.
STIG Date
Canonical Ubuntu 18.04 LTS Security Technical Implementation Guide 2021-11-29

Details

Check Text ( C-20906r304871_chk )
Verify if the pwquality configuration file enforces a minimum 15-character password length, by running the following command:

# grep -i minlen /etc/security/pwquality.conf
minlen=15

If "minlen" parameter value is not 15 or higher, or is commented out, this is a finding.
Fix Text (F-20905r304872_fix)
Configure the Ubuntu operating system to enforce a minimum 15-character password length.

Add, or modify the "minlen" parameter value to the "/etc/security/pwquality.conf" file:

minlen=15