RHEL 8, for certificate-based authentication, must enforce authorized access to the corresponding private key.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-230230	RHEL-08-010100	SV-230230r1017049_rule		Medium

Description

If an unauthorized user obtains access to a private key without a passcode, that user would have unauthorized access to any system where the associated public key has been installed.

STIG	Date
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 Security Technical Implementation Guide	2024-11-25

Details

Check Text (C-32899r567436_chk)

Verify the SSH private key files have a passcode.

For each private key stored on the system, use the following command:

$ sudo ssh-keygen -y -f /path/to/file

If the contents of the key are displayed, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-32874r567437_fix)

Create a new private and public key pair that utilizes a passcode with the following command:

$ sudo ssh-keygen -n [passphrase]