Ubuntu 22.04 LTS must enforce a minimum 15-character password length.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-260565	UBTU-22-611035	SV-260565r954001_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.

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 22.04 LTS Security Technical Implementation Guide	2024-03-21

Details

Check Text ( C-64294r953506_chk )
Verify the pwquality configuration file enforces a minimum 15-character password length by using the following command: $ grep -i minlen /etc/security/pwquality.conf minlen = 15 If "minlen" is not "15" or higher, is commented out, or is missing, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-64202r953507_fix)
Configure Ubuntu 22.04 LTS to enforce a minimum 15-character password length. Add or modify the following line in the "/etc/security/pwquality.conf" file: minlen = 15