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The information system must automatically remove or disable emergency accounts after the crisis is resolved or within 72 hours.


Overview

Finding ID Version Rule ID IA Controls Severity
V-57655 WN12-GE-000057 SV-72065r2_rule Medium
Description
Emergency administrator accounts are privileged accounts which are established in response to crisis situations where the need for rapid account activation is required. Therefore, emergency account activation may bypass normal account authorization processes. If these accounts are automatically disabled, system maintenance during emergencies may not be possible, thus adversely affecting system availability. Emergency administrator accounts are different from infrequently used accounts (i.e., local logon accounts used by system administrators when network or normal logon/access is not available). Infrequently used accounts are not subject to automatic termination dates. Emergency accounts are accounts created in response to crisis situations, usually for use by maintenance personnel. The automatic expiration or disabling time period may be extended as needed until the crisis is resolved; however, it must not be extended indefinitely. A permanent account should be established for privileged users who need long-term maintenance accounts. To address access requirements, many operating systems can be integrated with enterprise-level authentication/access mechanisms that meet or exceed access control policy requirements.
STIG Date
Windows Server 2012 / 2012 R2 Member Server Security Technical Implementation Guide 2016-12-19

Details

Check Text ( C-71053r2_chk )
Verify the operating system is configured such that emergency administrator accounts are automatically removed or disabled after the crisis is resolved or within 72 hours. If it is not, this is a finding.

Determine if emergency accounts are used and identify any that may be in existence.
For Domain Accounts:
Open PowerShell.
Run the command "Search-ADAccount -AccountExpiring" to determine if account expiration dates have been configured on any emergency accounts.

Local accounts:
Run "Net user ". This will list the account properties, including "Account Expires".
Fix Text (F-76899r2_fix)
Configure the operating system such that emergency administrator accounts are automatically removed or disabled after the crisis is resolved or within 72 hours.