Software certificate installation files must be removed from Windows 2008 R2.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-15823	2.021	SV-32276r2_rule		Medium

Description
Use of software certificates and their accompanying installation files for end users to access resources is less secure than the use of hardware-based certificates.

STIG	Date
Windows Server 2008 R2 Domain Controller Security Technical Implementation Guide	2019-06-18

Details

Check Text ( C-78299r1_chk )

Search all drives for *.p12 and *.pfx files. If any files with these extensions exist, this is a finding. This does not apply to server-based applications that have a requirement for certificate files. Some applications create files with extensions of .p12 that are not certificate installation files. Removal of non-certificate installation files from systems is not required. These must be documented with the ISSO.

Fix Text (F-85465r1_fix)
Remove any certificate installation files (*.p12 and *.pfx) found on a system. This does not apply to server-based applications that have a requirement for certificate files or non-certificate installation files with the same extension.