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

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-257911	RHEL-09-232155	SV-257911r991589_rule		Medium

Description

The "/etc/shadow" file stores 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-61652r925718_chk)

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

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

root /etc/shadow

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

Fix Text (F-61576r925719_fix)

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

$ sudo chgrp root /etc/shadow