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 /etc/passwd file must not contain password hashes.


Overview

Finding ID Version Rule ID IA Controls Severity
V-38499 RHEL-06-000031 SV-50300r1_rule Medium
Description
The hashes for all user account passwords should be stored in the file "/etc/shadow" and never in "/etc/passwd", which is readable by all users.
STIG Date
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 Security Technical Implementation Guide 2017-04-28

Details

Check Text ( None )
None
Fix Text (F-43446r1_fix)
If any password hashes are stored in "/etc/passwd" (in the second field, instead of an "x"), the cause of this misconfiguration should be investigated. The account should have its password reset and the hash should be properly stored, or the account should be deleted entirely.