RHEL 9 /etc/passwd file must have mode 0644 or less permissive to prevent unauthorized access.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-257895	RHEL-09-232075	SV-257895r991589_rule		Medium

Description

If the "/etc/passwd" file is writable by a group-owner or the world the risk of its compromise is increased. The file contains the list of accounts on the system and associated information, and protection of this file is critical for system security.

STIG	Date
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 Security Technical Implementation Guide	2024-12-04

Details

Check Text (C-61636r925670_chk)

Verify that the "/etc/passwd" file has mode "0644" or less permissive with the following command:

$ sudo stat -c "%a %n" /etc/passwd

644 /etc/passwd

If a value of "0644" or less permissive is not returned, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-61560r925671_fix)

Change the mode of the file "/etc/passwd" to "0644" by running the following command:

$ sudo chmod 0644 /etc/passwd