RHEL 9 /etc/group- file must be group-owned by root.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-257901	RHEL-09-232105	SV-257901r991589_rule		Medium

Description

The "/etc/group-" file is a backup file of "/etc/group", and as such, contains information regarding groups that are configured on the system. Protection of this file is important for system security.

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

Details

Check Text (C-61642r925688_chk)

Verify the group ownership of the "/etc/group-" file with the following command:

$ sudo stat -c "%G %n" /etc/group-

root /etc/group-

If "/etc/group-" file does not have a group owner of "root", this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-61566r925689_fix)

Change the group of the file /etc/group- to root by running the following command:

$ sudo chgrp root /etc/group-