RHEL 9 /etc/shadow- file must have mode 0000 or less permissive to prevent unauthorized access.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-257897	RHEL-09-232085	SV-257897r991589_rule		Medium

Description

The "/etc/shadow-" file is a backup file of "/etc/shadow", and as such, contains the list of local system accounts and password hashes. 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-61638r925676_chk)

Verify that the "/etc/shadow-" file has mode "0000" with the following command:

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

0 /etc/shadow-

If a value of "0" is not returned, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-61562r925677_fix)

Change the mode of the file "/etc/shadow-" to "0000" by running the following command:

$ sudo chmod 0000 /etc/shadow-