CIS CentOS Linux 8 Benchmark v1.0.1

CIS CentOS Linux 8 Benchmark
v1.0.1 - 05-19-2021
Terms of Use
Please see the below link for our current terms of use:
https://www.cisecurity.org/cis-securesuite/cis-securesuite-membership-terms-of-use/
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Table of Contents
Terms of Use ........................................................................................................................................................... 1

Overview ............................................................................................................................................................... 13
Intended Audience ........................................................................................................................................ 13
Consensus Guidance..................................................................................................................................... 13
Typographical Conventions ...................................................................................................................... 14
Assessment Status......................................................................................................................................... 14
Profile Definitions ......................................................................................................................................... 15
Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................................... 16
Recommendations ............................................................................................................................................. 18
1 Initial Setup .................................................................................................................................................. 18
1.1 Filesystem Configuration ............................................................................................................... 19
1.1.1 Disable unused filesystems ................................................................................................... 20
1.1.1.1 Ensure mounting of cramfs filesystems is disabled (Automated) ................ 21
1.1.1.2 Ensure mounting of vFAT filesystems is limited (Manual) .............................. 23
1.1.1.3 Ensure mounting of squashfs filesystems is disabled (Automated) ............. 25
1.1.1.4 Ensure mounting of udf filesystems is disabled (Automated) ........................ 27
1.1.2 Ensure /tmp is configured (Automated) .................................................................... 29
1.1.3 Ensure nodev option set on /tmp partition (Automated) ................................... 32
1.1.4 Ensure nosuid option set on /tmp partition (Automated) .................................. 34
1.1.5 Ensure noexec option set on /tmp partition (Automated) .................................. 36
1.1.6 Ensure separate partition exists for /var (Automated) ........................................ 38
1.1.7 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/tmp (Automated) ............................. 40
1.1.8 Ensure nodev option set on /var/tmp partition (Automated) .......................... 42
1.1.9 Ensure nosuid option set on /var/tmp partition (Automated) ......................... 44
1.1.10 Ensure noexec option set on /var/tmp partition (Automated) ...................... 46
1.1.11 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/log (Automated) ............................. 47
1.1.12 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/log/audit (Automated) ................ 49
1.1.13 Ensure separate partition exists for /home (Automated)................................. 51
1.1.14 Ensure nodev option set on /home partition (Automated).............................. 53
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1.1.15 Ensure nodev option set on /dev/shm partition (Automated) ....................... 55
1.1.16 Ensure nosuid option set on /dev/shm partition (Automated) ..................... 57
1.1.17 Ensure noexec option set on /dev/shm partition (Automated) ..................... 59
1.1.18 Ensure nodev option set on removable media partitions (Manual) ............. 61
1.1.19 Ensure nosuid option set on removable media partitions (Manual) ............ 63
1.1.20 Ensure noexec option set on removable media partitions (Manual) ............ 65
1.1.21 Ensure sticky bit is set on all world-writable directories (Automated) ...... 66
1.1.22 Disable Automounting (Automated) ......................................................................... 68
1.1.23 Disable USB Storage (Automated) .............................................................................. 70
1.2 Configure Software Updates ......................................................................................................... 72
1.2.1 Ensure GPG keys are configured (Manual) ................................................................ 73
1.2.2 Ensure gpgcheck is globally activated (Automated) .............................................. 75
1.2.3 Ensure package manager repositories are configured (Manual) ...................... 77
1.3 Configure sudo ................................................................................................................................... 79
1.3.1 Ensure sudo is installed (Automated) ......................................................................... 80
1.3.2 Ensure sudo commands use pty (Automated) ......................................................... 82
1.3.3 Ensure sudo log file exists (Automated) ..................................................................... 84
1.4 Filesystem Integrity Checking ...................................................................................................... 86
1.4.1 Ensure AIDE is installed (Automated) ......................................................................... 87
1.4.2 Ensure filesystem integrity is regularly checked (Automated) ......................... 89
1.5 Secure Boot Settings ........................................................................................................................ 92
1.5.1 Ensure permissions on bootloader config are configured (Automated) ........ 93
1.5.2 Ensure bootloader password is set (Automated).................................................... 96
1.5.3 Ensure authentication required for single user mode (Automated) ............... 99
1.6 Additional Process Hardening ................................................................................................... 101
1.6.1 Ensure core dumps are restricted (Automated) .................................................... 102
1.6.2 Ensure address space layout randomization (ASLR) is enabled (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 104
1.7 Mandatory Access Control ........................................................................................................... 106
1.7.1 Configure SELinux .................................................................................................................. 107
1.7.1.1 Ensure SELinux is installed (Automated) ............................................................. 109
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1.7.1.2 Ensure SELinux is not disabled in bootloader configuration (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 111
1.7.1.3 Ensure SELinux policy is configured (Automated) ........................................... 113
1.7.1.4 Ensure the SELinux state is enforcing (Automated) ......................................... 115
1.7.1.5 Ensure no unconfined services exist (Automated) ........................................... 117
1.7.1.6 Ensure SETroubleshoot is not installed (Automated) ..................................... 119
1.7.1.7 Ensure the MCS Translation Service (mcstrans) is not installed
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 121
1.8 Warning Banners............................................................................................................................. 123
1.8.1 Command Line Warning Banners .................................................................................... 124
1.8.1.1 Ensure message of the day is configured properly (Automated) ................ 125
1.8.1.2 Ensure local login warning banner is configured properly (Automated) 127
1.8.1.3 Ensure remote login warning banner is configured properly (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 129
1.8.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/motd are configured (Automated) ................ 131
1.8.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/issue are configured (Automated) ................. 133
1.8.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/issue.net are configured (Automated) ......... 134
1.8.2 Ensure GDM login banner is configured (Automated) ........................................ 136
1.9 Ensure updates, patches, and additional security software are installed
(Manual) ........................................................................................................................................... 138
1.10 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is not legacy (Automated).......................... 140
1.11 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is FUTURE or FIPS (Automated) ............. 142
2 Services ........................................................................................................................................................ 144
2.1 inetd Services .................................................................................................................................... 145
2.1.1 Ensure xinetd is not installed (Automated)............................................................. 146
2.2 Special Purpose Services .............................................................................................................. 148
2.2.1 Time Synchronization ........................................................................................................... 149
2.2.1.1 Ensure time synchronization is in use (Manual) ............................................... 150
2.2.1.2 Ensure chrony is configured (Automated) ........................................................... 152
2.2.2 Ensure X Window System is not installed (Automated) ..................................... 154
2.2.3 Ensure rsync service is not enabled (Automated) ................................................ 156
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2.2.4 Ensure Avahi Server is not enabled (Automated) ................................................. 158
2.2.5 Ensure SNMP Server is not enabled (Automated) ................................................ 160
2.2.6 Ensure HTTP Proxy Server is not enabled (Automated) .................................... 162
2.2.7 Ensure Samba is not enabled (Automated) ............................................................. 164
2.2.8 Ensure IMAP and POP3 server is not enabled (Automated) ............................. 166
2.2.9 Ensure HTTP server is not enabled (Automated) ................................................. 168
2.2.10 Ensure FTP Server is not enabled (Automated) .................................................. 170
2.2.11 Ensure DNS Server is not enabled (Automated) ................................................. 172
2.2.12 Ensure NFS is not enabled (Automated) ................................................................ 174
2.2.13 Ensure RPC is not enabled (Automated) ................................................................ 176
2.2.14 Ensure LDAP server is not enabled (Automated) ............................................... 178
2.2.15 Ensure DHCP Server is not enabled (Automated) .............................................. 180
2.2.16 Ensure CUPS is not enabled (Automated) ............................................................. 182
2.2.17 Ensure NIS Server is not enabled (Automated) ................................................... 184
2.2.18 Ensure mail transfer agent is configured for local-only mode (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 186
2.3 Service Clients .................................................................................................................................. 188
2.3.1 Ensure NIS Client is not installed (Automated) ..................................................... 189
2.3.2 Ensure telnet client is not installed (Automated) ................................................. 191
2.3.3 Ensure LDAP client is not installed (Automated) .................................................. 193
3 Network Configuration.......................................................................................................................... 195
3.1 Network Parameters (Host Only) ............................................................................................. 196
3.1.1 Ensure IP forwarding is disabled (Automated) ..................................................... 197
3.1.2 Ensure packet redirect sending is disabled (Automated) .................................. 199
3.2 Network Parameters (Host and Router) ................................................................................ 201
3.2.1 Ensure source routed packets are not accepted (Automated) ......................... 202
3.2.2 Ensure ICMP redirects are not accepted (Automated) ....................................... 205
3.2.3 Ensure secure ICMP redirects are not accepted (Automated) ......................... 208
3.2.4 Ensure suspicious packets are logged (Automated) ............................................ 210
3.2.5 Ensure broadcast ICMP requests are ignored (Automated) ............................. 212
3.2.6 Ensure bogus ICMP responses are ignored (Automated) .................................. 214
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3.2.7 Ensure Reverse Path Filtering is enabled (Automated)...................................... 216
3.2.8 Ensure TCP SYN Cookies is enabled (Automated) ................................................ 218
3.2.9 Ensure IPv6 router advertisements are not accepted (Automated) .............. 220
3.3 Uncommon Network Protocols ................................................................................................. 222
3.3.1 Ensure DCCP is disabled (Automated) ...................................................................... 223
3.3.2 Ensure SCTP is disabled (Automated) ....................................................................... 225
3.3.3 Ensure RDS is disabled (Automated) ......................................................................... 227
3.3.4 Ensure TIPC is disabled (Automated) ........................................................................ 229
3.4 Firewall Configuration .................................................................................................................. 231
3.4.1 Ensure Firewall software is installed.............................................................................. 232
3.4.1.1 Ensure a Firewall package is installed (Automated) ........................................ 233
3.4.2 Configure firewalld................................................................................................................. 235
3.4.2.1 Ensure firewalld service is enabled and running (Automated) ................... 236
3.4.2.2 Ensure iptables service is not enabled with firewalld (Automated) .......... 238
3.4.2.3 Ensure nftables is not enabled with firewalld (Automated) ......................... 240
3.4.2.4 Ensure firewalld default zone is set (Automated) ............................................. 242
3.4.2.5 Ensure network interfaces are assigned to appropriate zone (Manual) .. 244
3.4.2.6 Ensure firewalld drops unnecessary services and ports (Manual) ............ 246
3.4.3 Configure nftables .................................................................................................................. 248
3.4.3.1 Ensure iptables are flushed with nftables (Manual)......................................... 251
3.4.3.2 Ensure an nftables table exists (Automated) ...................................................... 253
3.4.3.3 Ensure nftables base chains exist (Automated) ................................................. 255
3.4.3.4 Ensure nftables loopback traffic is configured (Automated) ........................ 257
3.4.3.5 Ensure nftables outbound and established connections are configured
(Manual) ........................................................................................................................................... 259
3.4.3.6 Ensure nftables default deny firewall policy (Automated) ............................ 261
3.4.3.7 Ensure nftables service is enabled (Automated) ............................................... 263
3.4.3.8 Ensure nftables rules are permanent (Automated) .......................................... 264
3.4.4 Configure iptables................................................................................................................... 267
3.4.4.1.1 Ensure iptables default deny firewall policy (Automated) ........................ 269
3.4.4.1.2 Ensure iptables loopback traffic is configured (Automated) ..................... 271
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3.4.4.1.3 Ensure iptables outbound and established connections are configured
(Manual) ........................................................................................................................................... 273
3.4.4.1.4 Ensure iptables firewall rules exist for all open ports (Automated) ...... 275
3.4.4.1.5 Ensure iptables is enabled and active (Automated) ..................................... 277
3.4.4.1.6 Ensure iptables is enabled and active (Automated) ..................................... 279
3.4.4.2.1 Ensure ip6tables default deny firewall policy (Automated) ...................... 281
3.4.4.2.2 Ensure ip6tables loopback traffic is configured (Automated) .................. 283
3.4.4.2.3 Ensure ip6tables outbound and established connections are configured
(Manual) ........................................................................................................................................... 285
3.4.4.2.4 Ensure ip6tables firewall rules exist for all open ports (Automated).... 287
3.4.4.2.5 Ensure ip6tables is enabled and active (Automated) ................................... 289
3.5 Ensure wireless interfaces are disabled (Automated) ............................................ 291
3.6 Disable IPv6 (Manual) ......................................................................................................... 293
4 Logging and Auditing ............................................................................................................................. 295
4.1 Configure System Accounting (auditd) ................................................................................... 296
4.1.1 Ensure auditing is enabled .................................................................................................. 297
4.1.1.1 Ensure auditd is installed (Automated)................................................................. 298
4.1.1.2 Ensure auditd service is enabled (Automated) .................................................. 300
4.1.1.3 Ensure auditing for processes that start prior to auditd is enabled
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 302
4.1.1.4 Ensure audit_backlog_limit is sufficient (Automated) ..................................... 304
4.1.2 Configure Data Retention .................................................................................................... 306
4.1.2.1 Ensure audit log storage size is configured (Automated) .............................. 307
4.1.2.2 Ensure audit logs are not automatically deleted (Automated) .................... 309
4.1.2.3 Ensure system is disabled when audit logs are full (Automated) ............... 310
4.1.3 Ensure changes to system administration scope (sudoers) is collected
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 312
4.1.4 Ensure login and logout events are collected (Automated) .............................. 314
4.1.5 Ensure session initiation information is collected (Automated)..................... 316
4.1.6 Ensure events that modify date and time information are collected
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 318
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4.1.7 Ensure events that modify the system's Mandatory Access Controls are
collected (Automated) ................................................................................................................ 320
4.1.8 Ensure events that modify the system's network environment are collected
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 322
4.1.9 Ensure discretionary access control permission modification events are
collected (Automated) ................................................................................................................ 325
4.1.10 Ensure unsuccessful unauthorized file access attempts are collected
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 329
4.1.11 Ensure events that modify user/group information are collected
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 332
4.1.12 Ensure successful file system mounts are collected (Automated) ............... 334
4.1.13 Ensure use of privileged commands is collected (Automated) ..................... 337
4.1.14 Ensure file deletion events by users are collected (Automated) .................. 340
4.1.15 Ensure kernel module loading and unloading is collected (Automated) .. 343
4.1.16 Ensure system administrator actions (sudolog) are collected (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 346
4.1.17 Ensure the audit configuration is immutable (Automated)............................ 348
4.2 Configure Logging ........................................................................................................................... 350
4.2.1 Configure rsyslog .................................................................................................................... 351
4.2.1.1 Ensure rsyslog is installed (Automated) ............................................................... 352
4.2.1.2 Ensure rsyslog Service is enabled (Automated)................................................. 354
4.2.1.3 Ensure rsyslog default file permissions configured (Automated) .............. 356
4.2.1.4 Ensure logging is configured (Manual) .................................................................. 358
4.2.1.5 Ensure rsyslog is configured to send logs to a remote log host (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 360
4.2.1.6 Ensure remote rsyslog messages are only accepted on designated log
hosts. (Manual) .............................................................................................................................. 362
4.2.2 Configure journald.................................................................................................................. 364
4.2.2.1 Ensure journald is configured to send logs to rsyslog (Automated) .......... 365
4.2.2.2 Ensure journald is configured to compress large log files (Automated) .. 367
4.2.2.3 Ensure journald is configured to write logfiles to persistent disk
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 369
4.2.3 Ensure permissions on all logfiles are configured (Automated) ..................... 371
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4.3 Ensure logrotate is configured (Manual) ..................................................................... 373
5 Access, Authentication and Authorization ..................................................................................... 375
5.1 Configure cron .................................................................................................................................. 376
5.1.1 Ensure cron daemon is enabled (Automated) ........................................................ 377
5.1.2 Ensure permissions on /etc/crontab are configured (Automated) ............... 379
5.1.3 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.hourly are configured (Automated) ....... 381
5.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.daily are configured (Automated) ........... 383
5.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.weekly are configured (Automated) ...... 385
5.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.monthly are configured (Automated) ... 387
5.1.7 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.d are configured (Automated) .................. 389
5.1.8 Ensure at/cron is restricted to authorized users (Automated) ....................... 391
5.2 SSH Server Configuration ............................................................................................................. 394
5.2.1 Ensure permissions on /etc/ssh/sshd_config are configured (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 395
5.2.2 Ensure SSH access is limited (Automated) .............................................................. 397
5.2.3 Ensure permissions on SSH private host key files are configured
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 400
5.2.4 Ensure permissions on SSH public host key files are configured (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 403
5.2.5 Ensure SSH LogLevel is appropriate (Automated) ............................................... 406
5.2.6 Ensure SSH X11 forwarding is disabled (Automated)......................................... 408
5.2.7 Ensure SSH MaxAuthTries is set to 4 or less (Automated) ................................ 410
5.2.8 Ensure SSH IgnoreRhosts is enabled (Automated) .............................................. 412
5.2.9 Ensure SSH HostbasedAuthentication is disabled (Automated) ..................... 414
5.2.10 Ensure SSH root login is disabled (Automated) .................................................. 416
5.2.11 Ensure SSH PermitEmptyPasswords is disabled (Automated) ..................... 418
5.2.12 Ensure SSH PermitUserEnvironment is disabled (Automated) .................... 420
5.2.13 Ensure SSH Idle Timeout Interval is configured (Automated) ...................... 422
5.2.14 Ensure SSH LoginGraceTime is set to one minute or less (Automated) .... 425
5.2.15 Ensure SSH warning banner is configured (Automated) ................................. 427
5.2.16 Ensure SSH PAM is enabled (Automated) ............................................................. 429
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5.2.17 Ensure SSH AllowTcpForwarding is disabled (Automated) ........................... 431
5.2.18 Ensure SSH MaxStartups is configured (Automated) ....................................... 433
5.2.19 Ensure SSH MaxSessions is set to 4 or less (Automated) ................................ 435
5.2.20 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is not over-ridden (Automated) .......... 437
5.3 Configure authselect ...................................................................................................................... 438
5.3.1 Create custom authselect profile (Automated) ...................................................... 439
5.3.2 Select authselect profile (Automated) ....................................................................... 441
5.3.3 Ensure authselect includes with-faillock (Automated) ....................................... 443
5.4 Configure PAM.................................................................................................................................. 445
5.4.1 Ensure password creation requirements are configured (Automated) ....... 446
5.4.2 Ensure lockout for failed password attempts is configured (Automated) .. 450
5.4.3 Ensure password reuse is limited (Automated) .................................................... 453
5.4.4 Ensure password hashing algorithm is SHA-512 (Automated) ....................... 455
5.5 User Accounts and Environment .............................................................................................. 457
5.5.1 Set Shadow Password Suite Parameters ....................................................................... 458
5.5.1.1 Ensure password expiration is 365 days or less (Automated) ..................... 459
5.5.1.2 Ensure minimum days between password changes is 7 or more
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 461
5.5.1.3 Ensure password expiration warning days is 7 or more (Automated) ..... 463
5.5.1.4 Ensure inactive password lock is 30 days or less (Automated) ................... 465
5.5.1.5 Ensure all users last password change date is in the past (Automated) .. 467
5.5.2 Ensure system accounts are secured (Automated) .............................................. 468
5.5.3 Ensure default user shell timeout is 900 seconds or less (Automated) ....... 470
5.5.4 Ensure default group for the root account is GID 0 (Automated) ................... 473
5.5.5 Ensure default user umask is 027 or more restrictive (Automated) ............. 474
5.6 Ensure root login is restricted to system console (Manual) ................................. 479
5.7 Ensure access to the su command is restricted (Automated) .............................. 480
6 System Maintenance............................................................................................................................... 482
6.1 System File Permissions ............................................................................................................... 483
6.1.1 Audit system file permissions (Manual) ................................................................... 484
6.1.2 Ensure permissions on /etc/passwd are configured (Automated) ............... 487
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6.1.3 Ensure permissions on /etc/passwd- are configured (Automated) .............. 489
6.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/shadow are configured (Automated) ............... 491
6.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/shadow- are configured (Automated) ............. 493
6.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/gshadow are configured (Automated)............. 495
6.1.7 Ensure permissions on /etc/gshadow- are configured (Automated) ........... 497
6.1.8 Ensure permissions on /etc/group are configured (Automated) ................... 499
6.1.9 Ensure permissions on /etc/group- are configured (Automated) ................. 501
6.1.10 Ensure no world writable files exist (Automated) ............................................. 503
6.1.11 Ensure no unowned files or directories exist (Automated) ........................... 505
6.1.12 Ensure no ungrouped files or directories exist (Automated) ........................ 507
6.1.13 Audit SUID executables (Manual) ............................................................................. 509
6.1.14 Audit SGID executables (Manual) ............................................................................. 511
6.2 User and Group Settings ............................................................................................................... 513
6.2.1 Ensure password fields are not empty (Automated) ........................................... 514
6.2.2 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/passwd (Automated) .................... 516
6.2.3 Ensure root PATH Integrity (Automated) ................................................................ 517
6.2.4 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/shadow (Automated) ................... 519
6.2.5 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/group (Automated) ....................... 520
6.2.6 Ensure root is the only UID 0 account (Automated) ............................................ 521
6.2.7 Ensure users' home directories permissions are 750 or more restrictive
(Automated) .................................................................................................................................... 522
6.2.8 Ensure users own their home directories (Automated) ..................................... 524
6.2.9 Ensure users' dot files are not group or world writable (Automated) ......... 526
6.2.10 Ensure no users have .forward files (Automated) .............................................. 528
6.2.11 Ensure no users have .netrc files (Automated).................................................... 530
6.2.12 Ensure users' .netrc Files are not group or world accessible (Automated)
.............................................................................................................................................................. 532
6.2.13 Ensure no users have .rhosts files (Automated) ................................................. 535
6.2.14 Ensure all groups in /etc/passwd exist in /etc/group (Automated) .......... 537
6.2.15 Ensure no duplicate UIDs exist (Automated) ....................................................... 539
6.2.16 Ensure no duplicate GIDs exist (Automated) ....................................................... 541
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6.2.17 Ensure no duplicate user names exist (Automated) ......................................... 543
6.2.18 Ensure no duplicate group names exist (Automated) ...................................... 545
6.2.19 Ensure shadow group is empty (Automated) ...................................................... 547
6.2.20 Ensure all users' home directories exist (Automated) ..................................... 549
Appendix: Recommendation Summary Table ...................................................................................... 551
Appendix: Change History ............................................................................................................................ 561
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Overview
This document provides prescriptive guidance for establishing a secure configuration
posture for CentOS Linux 8 systems running on x86_64 platforms. This document was
tested against CentOS Linux 8.3
The guidance within broadly assumes that operations are being performed as the root user.
Operations performed using sudo instead of the root user may produce unexpected results,
or fail to make the intended changes to the system. Non-root users may not be able to
access certain areas of the system, especially after remediation has been performed. It is
advisable to verify root users path integrity and the integrity of any programs being run
prior to execution of commands and scripts included in this benchmark.
To obtain the latest version of this guide, please visit http://workbench.cisecurity.org. If
you have questions, comments, or have identified ways to improve this guide, please write
us at [email protected].
Intended Audience
This benchmark is intended for system and application administrators, security specialists,
auditors, help desk, and platform deployment personnel who plan to develop, deploy,
assess, or secure solutions that incorporate Fedora 28 derived Linux distributions on
x86_64 platforms.
Consensus Guidance
This benchmark was created using a consensus review process comprised of subject
matter experts. Consensus participants provide perspective from a diverse set of
backgrounds including consulting, software development, audit and compliance, security
research, operations, government, and legal.
Each CIS benchmark undergoes two phases of consensus review. The first phase occurs
during initial benchmark development. During this phase, subject matter experts convene
to discuss, create, and test working drafts of the benchmark. This discussion occurs until
consensus has been reached on benchmark recommendations. The second phase begins
after the benchmark has been published. During this phase, all feedback provided by the
Internet community is reviewed by the consensus team for incorporation in the
benchmark. If you are interested in participating in the consensus process, please visit
https://workbench.cisecurity.org/.
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Typographical Conventions
The following typographical conventions are used throughout this guide:
Convention Meaning
Stylized Monospace font Used for blocks of code, command, and script examples.
Text should be interpreted exactly as presented.
Monospace font Used for inline code, commands, or examples. Text should
be interpreted exactly as presented.
<italic font in brackets> Italic texts set in angle brackets denote a variable
requiring substitution for a real value.
Italic font Used to denote the title of a book, article, or other

publication.
Note Additional information or caveats
Assessment Status
An assessment status is included for every recommendation. The assessment status
indicates whether the given recommendation can be automated or requires manual steps
to implement. Both statuses are equally important and are determined and supported as
defined below:
Automated
Represents recommendations for which assessment of a technical control can be fully

automated and validated to a pass/fail state. Recommendations will include the necessary
information to implement automation.
Manual
Represents recommendations for which assessment of a technical control cannot be fully

automated and requires all or some manual steps to validate that the configured state is set
as expected. The expected state can vary depending on the environment.
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Profile Definitions
The following configuration profiles are defined by this Benchmark:
 Level 1 - Server
Items in this profile intend to:
o be practical and prudent;

o provide a clear security benefit; and
o not inhibit the utility of the technology beyond acceptable means.
This profile is intended for servers.
This profile extends the "Level 1 - Server" profile. Items in this profile exhibit one or
more of the following characteristics:
o are intended for environments or use cases where security is paramount.

o acts as defense in depth measure.
o may negatively inhibit the utility or performance of the technology.
This profile is intended for servers.
 Level 1 - Workstation
Items in this profile intend to:
o be practical and prudent;

o provide a clear security benefit; and
o not inhibit the utility of the technology beyond acceptable means.
This profile is intended for workstations.
This profile extends the "Level 1 - Workstation" profile. Items in this profile exhibit
one or more of the following characteristics:
o are intended for environments or use cases where security is paramount.

o acts as defense in depth measure.
o may negatively inhibit the utility or performance of the technology.
This profile is intended for workstations.
15 | P a g e
Acknowledgements
This benchmark exemplifies the great things a community of users, vendors, and subject matter
experts can accomplish through consensus collaboration. The CIS community thanks the entire
consensus team with special recognition to the following individuals who contributed greatly to
the creation of this guide:
This benchmark is based upon previous Linux benchmarks published and would not be
possible without the contributions provided over the history of all of these benchmarks.
The CIS community thanks everyone who has contributed to the Linux benchmarks.
Contributor
Rael Daruszka
Ron Colvin
Bill Erickson
Dave Billing
Dominic Pace
Elliot Anderson
Ely Pinto
Fredrik Silverskär
Joy Latten
Kirill Antonenko
Koen Laevens
Marcelo Cerri
Mark Birch
Martynas Brijunas
Michel Verbraak
Mike Thompson
Pradeep R B
Rakesh Jain
Robert Thomas
Tom Pietschmann
Vineetha Hari Pai
William E. Triest III
Anurag Pal
Bradley Hieber
Thomas Sjögren
James Trigg
Kenneth Karlsson
Mark Hesse
16 | P a g e
Editor
Jonathan Lewis Christopherson
Eric Pinnell
17 | P a g e
Recommendations
1 Initial Setup
Items in this section are advised for all systems, but may be difficult or require extensive
preparation after the initial setup of the system.
18 | P a g e
1.1 Filesystem Configuration
Directories that are used for system-wide functions can be further protected by placing
them on separate partitions. This provides protection for resource exhaustion and enables
the use of mounting options that are applicable to the directory's intended use. Users' data
can be stored on separate partitions and have stricter mount options. A user partition is a
filesystem that has been established for use by the users and does not contain software for
system operations.
The recommendations in this section are easier to perform during initial system
installation. If the system is already installed, it is recommended that a full backup be
performed before repartitioning the system.
Note: If you are repartitioning a system that has already been installed, make sure the data
has been copied over to the new partition, unmount it and then remove the data from the
directory that was in the old partition. Otherwise it will still consume space in the old
partition that will be masked when the new filesystem is mounted. For example, if a system
is in single-user mode with no filesystems mounted and the administrator adds a lot of data
to the /tmp directory, this data will still consume space in / once the /tmp filesystem is
mounted unless it is removed first.
19 | P a g e
1.1.1 Disable unused filesystems
A number of uncommon filesystem types are supported under Linux. Removing support for
unneeded filesystem types reduces the local attack surface of the system. If a filesystem
type is not needed it should be disabled. Native Linux file systems are designed to ensure
that built-in security controls function as expected. Non-native filesystems can lead to
unexpected consequences to both the security and functionality of the system and should
be used with caution. Many filesystems are created for niche use cases and are not
maintained and supported as the operating systems are updated and patched. Users of
non-native filesystems should ensure that there is attention and ongoing support for them,
especially in light of frequent operating system changes.
Standard network connectivity and Internet access to cloud storage may make the use of
non-standard filesystem formats to directly attach heterogeneous devices much less
attractive.
Note: This should not be considered a comprehensive list of filesystems. You may wish to
consider additions to those listed here for your environment.
20 | P a g e
1.1.1.1 Ensure mounting of cramfs filesystems is disabled (Automated)
Profile Applicability:
Description:
The cramfs filesystem type is a compressed read-only Linux filesystem embedded in small
footprint systems. A cramfs image can be used without having to first decompress the
image.
Rationale:
Removing support for unneeded filesystem types reduces the local attack surface of the
server. If this filesystem type is not needed, disable it.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify the output is as indicated:
# modprobe -n -v cramfs
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep cramfs
<No output>
Remediation:
Edit or create a file in the /etc/modprobe.d/ directory ending in .conf

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/cramfs.conf
and add the following line:
install cramfs /bin/true
Run the following command to unload the cramfs module:
# rmmod cramfs
21 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Control IG 1 IG 2 IG 3
Version
4.1 Establish and Maintain a Secure Configuration Process

Establish and maintain a secure configuration process for enterprise assets (end-
user devices, including portable and mobile, non-computing/IoT devices, and servers)
v8
and software (operating systems and applications). Review and update documentation
● ● ●
annually, or when significant enterprise changes occur that could impact this
Safeguard.
5.1 Establish Secure Configurations

v7 Maintain documented, standard security configuration standards for all authorized ● ● ●
operating systems and software.
22 | P a g e
1.1.1.2 Ensure mounting of vFAT filesystems is limited (Manual)
Description:
The vFAT filesystem format is primarily used on older windows systems and portable USB
drives or flash modules. It comes in three types FAT12 , FAT16 , and FAT32 all of which are
supported by the vfat kernel module.
Rationale:
system. If this filesystem type is not needed, disable it.
Impact:
The FAT filesystem format is used by UEFI systems for the EFI boot partition. Disabling the
vfat module can prevent boot on UEFI systems.
FAT filesystems are often used on portable USB sticks and other flash media which are
commonly used to transfer files between workstations, removing VFAT support may
prevent the ability to transfer files in this way.
23 | P a g e
Audit:
If utilizing UEFI the vFAT filesystem format is required. If this case, ensure that the vFAT
filesystem is only used where appropriate
Run the following command
grep -E -i '\svfat\s' /etc/fstab
And review that any output is appropriate for your environment

If not utilizing UEFI
# modprobe -n -v vfat
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep vfat
<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/vfat.conf
install vfat /bin/true
Run the following command to unload the vfat module:
# rmmod vfat
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

24 | P a g e
1.1.1.3 Ensure mounting of squashfs filesystems is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The squashfs filesystem type is a compressed read-only Linux filesystem embedded in

small footprint systems (similar to cramfs ). A squashfs image can be used without having
to first decompress the image.
Rationale:
Audit:
# modprobe -n -v squashfs
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep squashfs
<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/squashfs.conf
install squashfs /bin/true
Run the following command to unload the squashfs module:
# rmmod squashfs
25 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

26 | P a g e
1.1.1.4 Ensure mounting of udf filesystems is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The udf filesystem type is the universal disk format used to implement ISO/IEC 13346 and
ECMA-167 specifications. This is an open vendor filesystem type for data storage on a
broad range of media. This filesystem type is necessary to support writing DVDs and newer
optical disc formats.
Rationale:
Audit:
# modprobe -n -v udf
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep udf
<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/udf.conf
install udf /bin/true
Run the following command to unload the udf module:
# rmmod udf
27 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

28 | P a g e
1.1.2 Ensure /tmp is configured (Automated)
Description:
The /tmp directory is a world-writable directory used for temporary storage by all users
and some applications.
Rationale:
Making /tmp its own file system allows an administrator to set the noexec option on the
mount, making /tmp useless for an attacker to install executable code. It would also
prevent an attacker from establishing a hardlink to a system setuid program and wait for it
to be updated. Once the program was updated, the hardlink would be broken and the
attacker would have his own copy of the program. If the program happened to have a
security vulnerability, the attacker could continue to exploit the known flaw.
This can be accomplished by either mounting tmpfs to /tmp, or creating a separate

partition for /tmp.
Impact:
Since the /tmp directory is intended to be world-writable, there is a risk of resource

exhaustion if it is not bound to a separate partition.
Running out of /tmp space is a problem regardless of what kind of filesystem lies under it,
but in a default installation a disk-based /tmp will essentially have the whole disk available,
as it only creates a single / partition. On the other hand, a RAM-based /tmp as with tmpfs
will almost certainly be much smaller, which can lead to applications filling up the
filesystem much more easily.
/tmp utilizing tmpfs can be resized using the size={size} parameter on the Options line on
the tmp.mount file
29 | P a g e
Audit:
Run the following command and verify output shows /tmp is mounted:
# mount | grep -E '\s/tmp\s'
tmpfs on /tmp type tmpfs (rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,relatime)
If /etc/fstab is used: run the following command and verify that tmpfs has been mounted
to tmpfs, or a system partition has been created for /tmp
# grep -E '\s/tmp\s' /etc/fstab | grep -E -v '^\s*#'
tmpfs /tmp tmpfs defaults,noexec,nosuid,nodev 0 0
OR If systemd tmp.mount file is used: run the following command and verify that tmp.mount
is enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled tmp.mount
enabled
Remediation:
Create or update an entry for /tmp in either /etc/fstab OR in a systemd tmp.mount file:
If /etc/fstab is used: configure /etc/fstab as appropriate.
Example:
tmpfs /tmp tmpfs defaults,rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,relatime 0 0
Run the following command to remount /tmp
# mount -o remount,noexec,nodev,nosuid /tmp
OR if systemd tmp.mount file is used:

Run the following command to create the file /etc/systemd/system/tmp.mount if it doesn't
exist:
# [ ! -f /etc/systemd/system/tmp.mount ] && cp -v
/usr/lib/systemd/system/tmp.mount /etc/systemd/system/
Edit the file /etc/systemd/system/tmp.mount:
[Mount]
What=tmpfs
Where=/tmp
Type=tmpfs
Options=mode=1777,strictatime,noexec,nodev,nosuid
30 | P a g e
Run the following command to reload the systemd daemon:
# systemctl daemon-reload
Run the following command to unmask and start tmp.mount:
# systemctl unmask tmp.mount

# systemctl --now enable tmp.mount
References:
1. AJ Lewis, "LVM HOWTO", http://tldp.org/HOWTO/LVM-HOWTO/

2. https://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/Software/systemd/APIFileSystems/
Additional Information:
If an entry for /tmp exists in /etc/fstab it will take precedence over entries in the
tmp.mount file
BUG 1667065* There is currently a bug in RHEL 8 when attempting to use systemd
tmp.mount please reference link bellow
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1667065
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
9.1 Associate Active Ports, Services and Protocols to Asset

v7 Inventory ● ●
Associate active ports, services and protocols to the hardware assets in the asset
inventory.
31 | P a g e
1.1.3 Ensure nodev option set on /tmp partition (Automated)
Description:
The nodev mount option specifies that the filesystem cannot contain special devices.
Rationale:
Since the /tmp filesystem is not intended to support devices, set this option to ensure that
users cannot attempt to create block or character special devices in /tmp .
Audit:
Verify that the nodev option is set if a /tmp partition exists

Run the following command and verify that nothing is returned:
# mount | grep -E '\s/tmp\s' | grep -v nodev
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nodev to the fourth field (mounting options) for the /tmp
partition. See the fstab(5) manual page for more information.
Run the following command to remount /tmp :
# mount -o remount,nodev /tmp
OR
Edit /etc/systemd/system/local-fs.target.wants/tmp.mount to add nodev to the /tmp
mount options:
[Mount]
# mount -o remount,nodev /tmp
32 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

33 | P a g e
1.1.4 Ensure nosuid option set on /tmp partition (Automated)
Description:
The nosuid mount option specifies that the filesystem cannot contain setuid files.
Rationale:
Since the /tmp filesystem is only intended for temporary file storage, set this option to
ensure that users cannot create setuid files in /tmp .
Audit:
Verify that the nosuid option is set if a /tmp partition exists

# mount | grep -E '\s/tmp\s' | grep -v nosuid
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nosuid to the fourth field (mounting options) for the /tmp
# mount -o remount,nosuid /tmp
or
Edit /etc/systemd/system/local-fs.target.wants/tmp.mount to add nosuid to the /tmp
mount options:
[Mount]
# mount -o remount,nosuid /tmp
34 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

35 | P a g e
1.1.5 Ensure noexec option set on /tmp partition (Automated)
Description:
The noexec mount option specifies that the filesystem cannot contain executable binaries.
Rationale:
Since the /tmp filesystem is only intended for temporary file storage, set this option to
ensure that users cannot run executable binaries from /tmp .
Audit:
Verify that the noexec option is set if a /tmp partition exists

# mount | grep -E '\s/tmp\s' | grep -v noexec
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add noexec to the fourth field (mounting options) for the /tmp
# mount -o remount,noexec /tmp
or
Edit /etc/systemd/system/local-fs.target.wants/tmp.mount to add noexec to the /tmp
mount options:
[Mount]
# mount -o remount,noexec /tmp
36 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
2.3 Address Unauthorized Software

v8 Ensure that unauthorized software is either removed from use on enterprise ● ● ●
assets or receives a documented exception. Review monthly, or more frequently.
2.6 Address unapproved software

v7 Ensure that unauthorized software is either removed or the inventory is updated ● ● ●
in a timely manner
37 | P a g e
1.1.6 Ensure separate partition exists for /var (Automated)
Description:
The /var directory is used by daemons and other system services to temporarily store
dynamic data. Some directories created by these processes may be world-writable.
Rationale:
Since the /var directory may contain world-writable files and directories, there is a risk of
resource exhaustion if it is not bound to a separate partition.
Impact:
Resizing filesystems is a common activity in cloud-hosted servers. Separate filesystem

partitions may prevent successful resizing, or may require the installation of additional
tools solely for the purpose of resizing operations. The use of these additional tools may
introduce their own security considerations.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify output shows /var is mounted:
# mount | grep -E '\s/var\s'

/dev/xvdg1 on /var type xfs (rw,relatime,data=ordered)
Remediation:
For new installations, during installation create a custom partition setup and specify a
separate partition for /var .
For systems that were previously installed, create a new partition and configure
/etc/fstab as appropriate.
References:
38 | P a g e
When modifying /var it is advisable to bring the system to emergency mode (so auditd is
not running), rename the existing directory, mount the new file system, and migrate the
data over before returning to multiuser mode.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

39 | P a g e
1.1.7 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/tmp (Automated)
Description:
The /var/tmp directory is a world-writable directory used for temporary storage by all
users and some applications.
Rationale:
Since the /var/tmp directory is intended to be world-writable, there is a risk of resource

exhaustion if it is not bound to a separate partition. In addition, making /var/tmp its own
file system allows an administrator to set the noexec option on the mount, making
/var/tmp useless for an attacker to install executable code. It would also prevent an
attacker from establishing a hardlink to a system setuid program and wait for it to be
updated. Once the program was updated, the hardlink would be broken and the attacker
would have his own copy of the program. If the program happened to have a security
vulnerability, the attacker could continue to exploit the known flaw.
Impact:

Audit:
Run the following command and verify output shows /var/tmp is mounted:
# mount | grep /var/tmp

<device> on /var/tmp type xfs (rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,relatime)
Remediation:
separate partition for /var/tmp .
40 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
3.3 Configure Data Access Control Lists

Configure data access control lists based on a user’s need to know. Apply data access
v8
control lists, also known as access permissions, to local and remote file systems,
● ● ●
databases, and applications.

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

41 | P a g e
1.1.8 Ensure nodev option set on /var/tmp partition (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Since the /var/tmp filesystem is not intended to support devices, set this option to ensure
that users cannot attempt to create block or character special devices in /var/tmp .
Audit:
Verify that the nodev option is set if a /var/tmp partition exists.

# mount | grep -E '\s/var/tmp\s' | grep -v nodev
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nodev to the fourth field (mounting options) for the
/var/tmp partition. See the fstab(5) manual page for more information.
Run the following command to remount /var/tmp :
# mount -o remount,nodev /var/tmp
42 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

43 | P a g e
1.1.9 Ensure nosuid option set on /var/tmp partition (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Since the /var/tmp filesystem is only intended for temporary file storage, set this option to
ensure that users cannot create setuid files in /var/tmp .
Audit:
Verify that the nosuid option is set if a /var/tmp partition exists.

# mount | grep -E '\s/var/tmp\s' | grep -v nosuid
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nosuid to the fourth field (mounting options) for the
Run the following command to remount /var/tmp:
# mount -o remount,nosuid /var/tmp
44 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

45 | P a g e
1.1.10 Ensure noexec option set on /var/tmp partition (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Since the /var/tmp filesystem is only intended for temporary file storage, set this option to
ensure that users cannot run executable binaries from /var/tmp .
Audit:
Verify that the noexec option is set if a /var/tmp partition exists.

# mount | grep -E '\s/var/tmp\s' | grep -v noexec
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add noexec to the fourth field (mounting options) for the
Run the following command to remount /var/tmp :
# mount -o remount,noexec /var/tmp
CIS Controls:
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in a timely manner
46 | P a g e
1.1.11 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/log (Automated)
Description:
The /var/log directory is used by system services to store log data .
Rationale:
There are two important reasons to ensure that system logs are stored on a separate
partition: protection against resource exhaustion (since logs can grow quite large) and
protection of audit data.
Impact:

Audit:
Run the following command and verify output shows /var/log is mounted:
# mount | grep /var/log
/dev/xvdh1 on /var/log type xfs (rw,relatime,data=ordered)
Remediation:
separate partition for /var/log .
References:
47 | P a g e
When modifying /var/log it is advisable to bring the system to emergency mode (so auditd
is not running), rename the existing directory, mount the new file system, and migrate the
data over before returning to multiuser mode.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
8.3 Ensure Adequate Audit Log Storage

v8 Ensure that logging destinations maintain adequate storage to comply with the ● ●
enterprise’s audit log management process.
6.4 Ensure adequate storage for logs

v7 Ensure that all systems that store logs have adequate storage space for the logs ● ●
generated.
48 | P a g e
1.1.12 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/log/audit (Automated)
Description:
The auditing daemon, auditd , stores log data in the /var/log/audit directory.
Rationale:
There are two important reasons to ensure that data gathered by auditd is stored on a
separate partition: protection against resource exhaustion (since the audit.log file can
grow quite large) and protection of audit data. The audit daemon calculates how much free
space is left and performs actions based on the results. If other processes (such as syslog )
consume space in the same partition as auditd , it may not perform as desired.
Impact:

Audit:
Run the following command and verify output shows /var/log/audit is mounted:
# mount | grep /var/log/audit

/dev/xvdi1 on /var/log/audit type xfs (rw,relatime,data=ordered)
Remediation:
separate partition for /var/log/audit .
References:
49 | P a g e
When modifying /var/log/audit it is advisable to bring the system to emergency mode (so
auditd is not running), rename the existing directory, mount the new file system, and
migrate the data over before returning to multiuser mode.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


generated.
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1.1.13 Ensure separate partition exists for /home (Automated)
Description:
The /home directory is used to support disk storage needs of local users.
Rationale:
If the system is intended to support local users, create a separate partition for the /home
directory to protect against resource exhaustion and restrict the type of files that can be
stored under /home .
Impact:

Audit:
Run the following command and verify output shows /home is mounted:
# mount | grep /home
/dev/xvdf1 on /home type xfs (rw,nodev,relatime,data=ordered)
Remediation:
separate partition for /home .
References:
51 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
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52 | P a g e
1.1.14 Ensure nodev option set on /home partition (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Since the user partitions are not intended to support devices, set this option to ensure that
users cannot attempt to create block or character special devices.
Audit:
Verify that the nodev option is set if a /home partition exists.

# mount | grep -E '\s/home\s' | grep -v nodev
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nodev to the fourth field (mounting options) for the /home
# mount -o remount,nodev /home
The actions in this recommendation refer to the /home partition, which is the default user
partition that is defined in many distributions. If you have created other user partitions, it
is recommended that the Remediation and Audit steps be applied to these partitions as
well.
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CIS Controls:
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Version

v8
● ● ●

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

54 | P a g e
1.1.15 Ensure nodev option set on /dev/shm partition (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Since the /dev/shm filesystem is not intended to support devices, set this option to ensure
that users cannot attempt to create special devices in /dev/shm partitions.
Audit:
Verify that the nodev option is set if a /dev/shm partition exists.

# mount | grep -E '\s/dev/shm\s' | grep -v nodev
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nodev to the fourth field (mounting options) for the
/dev/shm partition. See the fstab(5) manual page for more information.
Run the following command to remount /dev/shm :
# mount -o remount,nodev /dev/shm
Some distributions mount /dev/shm through other means and require /dev/shm to be
added to /etc/fstab even though it is already being mounted on boot. Others may
configure /dev/shm in other locations and may override /etc/fstab configuration. Consult
the documentation appropriate for your distribution.
55 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

56 | P a g e
1.1.16 Ensure nosuid option set on /dev/shm partition (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Setting this option on a file system prevents users from introducing privileged programs
onto the system and allowing non-root users to execute them.
Audit:
Verify that the nosuid option is set if a /dev/shm partition exists.

# mount | grep -E '\s/dev/shm\s' | grep -v nosuid
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nosuid to the fourth field (mounting options) for the
Run the following command to remount /dev/shm :
# mount -o remount,nosuid /dev/shm
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

58 | P a g e
1.1.17 Ensure noexec option set on /dev/shm partition (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Setting this option on a file system prevents users from executing programs from shared
memory. This deters users from introducing potentially malicious software on the system.
Audit:
Verify that the noexec option is set if a /dev/shm partition exists.

# mount | grep -E '\s/dev/shm\s' | grep -v noexec
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add noexec to the fourth field (mounting options) for the
Run the following command to remount /dev/shm:
# mount -o remount,noexec /dev/shm
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CIS Controls:
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in a timely manner
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1.1.18 Ensure nodev option set on removable media partitions (Manual)
Description:
Rationale:
Removable media containing character and block special devices could be used to
circumvent security controls by allowing non-root users to access sensitive device files
such as /dev/kmem or the raw disk partitions.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the nodev option is set on all removable media
partitions.
# mount
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nodev to the fourth field (mounting options) of all
removable media partitions. Look for entries that have mount points that contain words
such as floppy or cdrom. See the fstab(5) manual page for more information.
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CIS Controls:
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v8
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v8
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1.1.19 Ensure nosuid option set on removable media partitions
(Manual)
Description:
Rationale:
Setting this option on a file system prevents users from introducing privileged programs
onto the system and allowing non-root users to execute them.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the nosuid option is set on all removable media
partitions.
# mount
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add nosuid to the fourth field (mounting options) of all
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.1.20 Ensure noexec option set on removable media partitions
(Manual)
Description:
Rationale:
Setting this option on a file system prevents users from executing programs from the
removable media. This deters users from being able to introduce potentially malicious
software on the system.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the noexec option is set on all removable media
partitions.
# mount
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/fstab file and add noexec to the fourth field (mounting options) of all
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


in a timely manner
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1.1.21 Ensure sticky bit is set on all world-writable directories
(Automated)
Description:
Setting the sticky bit on world writable directories prevents users from deleting or
renaming files in that directory that are not owned by them.
Rationale:
This feature prevents the ability to delete or rename files in world writable directories
(such as /tmp ) that are owned by another user.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify no world writable directories exist without the sticky
bit set:
# df --local -P | awk '{if (NR!=1) print $6}' | xargs -I '{}' find '{}' -xdev
-type d $ -perm -0002 -a ! -perm -1000 $ 2>/dev/null
No output should be returned.
Remediation:
Run the following command to set the sticky bit on all world writable directories:
-type d $ -perm -0002 -a ! -perm -1000 $ 2>/dev/null | xargs -I '{}' chmod
a+t '{}'
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.1.22 Disable Automounting (Automated)
Description:
autofs allows automatic mounting of devices, typically including CD/DVDs and USB drives.
Rationale:
With automounting enabled anyone with physical access could attach a USB drive or disc
and have its contents available in system even if they lacked permissions to mount it
themselves.
Impact:
The use of portable hard drives is very common for workstation users. If your organization
allows the use of portable storage or media on workstations and physical access controls to
workstations is considered adequate there is little value add in turning off automounting.
Audit:
Runthe following command to verify autofs is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled autofs
disabled
Verify result is not "enabled".
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable autofs:
# systemctl --now disable autofs
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Additional methods of disabling a service exist. Consult your distribution documentation

for appropriate methods.
This control should align with the tolerance of the use of portable drives and optical media
in the organization. On a server requiring an admin to manually mount media can be part
of defense-in-depth to reduce the risk of unapproved software or information being
introduced or proprietary software or information being exfiltrated. If admins commonly
use flash drives and Server access has sufficient physical controls, requiring manual
mounting may not increase security.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
10.3 Disable Autorun and Autoplay for Removable Media

v8
Disable autorun and autoplay auto-execute functionality for removable media.
● ● ●
8.4 Configure Anti-Malware Scanning of Removable

v7 Devices ● ● ●
Configure devices so that they automatically conduct an anti-malware scan of
removable media when inserted or connected.
8.5 Configure Devices Not To Auto-run Content

v7
Configure devices to not auto-run content from removable media.
● ● ●
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1.1.23 Disable USB Storage (Automated)
Description:
USB storage provides a means to transfer and store files insuring persistence and
availability of the files independent of network connection status. Its popularity and utility
has led to USB-based malware being a simple and common means for network infiltration
and a first step to establishing a persistent threat within a networked environment.
Rationale:
Restricting USB access on the system will decrease the physical attack surface for a device
and diminish the possible vectors to introduce malware.
Audit:
# modprobe -n -v usb-storage
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep usb-storage
<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/usb_storage.conf
install usb-storage /bin/true
Run the following command to unload the usb-storage module:
rmmod usb-storage
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An alternative solution to disabling the usb-storage module may be found in USBGuard.
Use of USBGuard and construction of USB device policies should be done in alignment with
site policy.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
8.4 Configure Anti-Malware Scanning of Removable Devices

v7 Configure devices so that they automatically conduct an anti-malware scan of ● ● ●
removable media when inserted or connected.
8.5 Configure Devices Not To Auto-run Content

v7
Configure devices to not auto-run content from removable media.
● ● ●
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1.2 Configure Software Updates
CentOS Linux 8 uses dnf (previously yum) to install and update software packages. Patch
management procedures may vary widely between enterprises. Large enterprises may
choose to install a local updates server that can be used in place of their distributions
servers, whereas a single deployment of a system may prefer to get updates directly.
Updates can be performed automatically or manually, depending on the site's policy for
patch management. Many large enterprises prefer to test patches on a non-production
system before rolling out to production.
For the purpose of this benchmark, the requirement is to ensure that a patch management
system is configured and maintained. The specifics on patch update procedures are left to
the organization.
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1.2.1 Ensure GPG keys are configured (Manual)
Description:
Most packages managers implement GPG key signing to verify package integrity during
installation.
Rationale:
It is important to ensure that updates are obtained from a valid source to protect against
spoofing that could lead to the inadvertent installation of malware on the system.
Audit:
Verify GPG keys are configured correctly for your package manager. Depending on the
package management in use one of the following command groups may provide the needed
information:
# rpm -q gpg-pubkey --qf '%{name}-%{version}-%{release} --> %{summary}\n'
Remediation:
Update your package manager GPG keys in accordance with site policy.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
7.3 Perform Automated Operating System Patch

v8 Management ● ● ●
Perform operating system updates on enterprise assets through automated patch
management on a monthly, or more frequent, basis.
7.4 Perform Automated Application Patch Management

v8 Perform application updates on enterprise assets through automated patch ● ● ●
3.4 Deploy Automated Operating System Patch

Management Tools
v7 Deploy automated software update tools in order to ensure that the operating ● ● ●
systems are running the most recent security updates provided by the software
vendor.
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1.2.2 Ensure gpgcheck is globally activated (Automated)
Description:
The gpgcheck option, found in the main section of the /etc/yum.conf and individual
/etc/yum/repos.d/* files determines if an RPM package's signature is checked prior to its
installation.
Rationale:
It is important to ensure that an RPM's package signature is always checked prior to

installation to ensure that the software is obtained from a trusted source.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify gpgcheck is set to ' 1 ':
# grep ^gpgcheck /etc/yum.conf
gpgcheck=1
Run the following command and verify that all instances of gpgcheck returned are set to ' 1
':
# grep ^gpgcheck /etc/yum.repos.d/*
Remediation:
Edit /etc/yum.conf and set 'gpgcheck=1' in the [main] section.

Edit any failing files in /etc/yum.repos.d/* and set all instances of gpgcheck to '1'.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


Management Tools
vendor.
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1.2.3 Ensure package manager repositories are configured (Manual)
Description:
Systems need to have package manager repositories configured to ensure they receive the
latest patches and updates.
Rationale:
If a system's package repositories are misconfigured important patches may not be

identified or a rogue repository could introduce compromised software.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify repositories are configured correctly:
# dnf repolist
Remediation:
Configure your package manager repositories according to site policy.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version



Management Tools
vendor.
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1.3 Configure sudo
sudo allows a permitted user to execute a command as the superuser or another user, as
specified by the security policy. The invoking user's real (not effective) user ID is used to
determine the user name with which to query the security policy.
sudo supports a plugin architecture for security policies and input/output logging. Third
parties can develop and distribute their own policy and I/O logging plugins to work
seamlessly with the sudo front end. The default security policy is sudoers, which is
configured via the file /etc/sudoers.
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1.3.1 Ensure sudo is installed (Automated)
Description:
sudo allows a permitted user to execute a command as the superuser or another user, as
specified by the security policy. The invoking user's real (not effective) user ID is used to
determine the user name with which to query the security policy.
Rationale:
sudo supports a plugin architecture for security policies and input/output logging. Third
parties can develop and distribute their own policy and I/O logging plugins to work
seamlessly with the sudo front end. The default security policy is sudoers, which is
configured via the file /etc/sudoers.
The security policy determines what privileges, if any, a user has to run sudo. The policy
may require that users authenticate themselves with a password or another authentication
mechanism. If authentication is required, sudo will exit if the user's password is not
entered within a configurable time limit. This limit is policy-specific.
Audit:
Verify that sudo in installed.

Run the following command:
# rpm -q sudo
sudo-<VERSION>
Remediation:
Run the following command to install sudo
# dnf install sudo
References:
1. SUDO(8)
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
4.3 Ensure the Use of Dedicated Administrative Accounts

Ensure that all users with administrative account access use a dedicated or
v7
secondary account for elevated activities. This account should only be used for
● ● ●
administrative activities and not internet browsing, email, or similar activities.
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1.3.2 Ensure sudo commands use pty (Automated)
Description:
sudo can be configured to run only from a psuedo-pty
Rationale:
Attackers can run a malicious program using sudo which would fork a background process
that remains even when the main program has finished executing.
Impact:
editing the sudo configuration incorrectly can cause sudo to stop functioning.
Audit:
Verify that sudo can only run other commands from a psuedo-pty
# grep -Ei '^\s*Defaults\s+(\[^#]+,\s*)?use_pty' /etc/sudoers

/etc/sudoers.d/*
Defaults use_pty
Remediation:
edit the file /etc/sudoers or a file in /etc/sudoers.d/ with visudo -f and add the following
line:
Defaults use_pty
References:
1. SUDO(8)
2. VISUDO(8)
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visudo edits the sudoers file in a safe fashion, analogous to vipw(8). visudo locks the
sudoers file against multiple simultaneous edits, provides basic sanity checks, and checks
or parse errors. If the sudoers file is currently being edited you will receive a message to try
again later.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.3.3 Ensure sudo log file exists (Automated)
Description:
sudo can use a custom log file
Rationale:
A sudo log file simplifies auditing of sudo commands
Impact:
editing the sudo configuration incorrectly can cause sudo to stop functioning
Audit:
Run the following command to verify that sudo has a custom log file configured
# grep -Esi '^\s*Defaults\s+([^#]+,\s*)?logfile=' /etc/sudoers

/etc/sudoers.d/*
Defaults logfile="/var/log/sudo.log"
Remediation:
Edit the file /etc/sudoers or a file in /etc/sudoers.d/ with visudo or visudo -f and add the
following line:
Defaults logfile="<PATH TO CUSTOM LOG FILE>"
Example
Defaults logfile="/var/log/sudo.log"
References:
1. SUDO(8)
2. VISUDO(8)
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visudo edits the sudoers file in a safe fashion, analogous to vipw(8). visudo locks the
sudoers file against multiple simultaneous edits, provides basic sanity checks, and checks
for parse errors. If the sudoers file is currently being edited you will receive a message to
try again later.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
8.5 Collect Detailed Audit Logs

Configure detailed audit logging for enterprise assets containing sensitive data.
v8
Include event source, date, username, timestamp, source addresses, destination
● ●
addresses, and other useful elements that could assist in a forensic investigation.
6.3 Enable Detailed Logging

Enable system logging to include detailed information such as an event source,
v7
date, user, timestamp, source addresses, destination addresses, and other useful
● ●
elements.
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1.4 Filesystem Integrity Checking
AIDE is a file integrity checking tool, similar in nature to Tripwire. While it cannot prevent
intrusions, it can detect unauthorized changes to configuration files by alerting when the
files are changed. When setting up AIDE, decide internally what the site policy will be
concerning integrity checking. Review the AIDE quick start guide and AIDE documentation
before proceeding.
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1.4.1 Ensure AIDE is installed (Automated)
Description:
AIDE takes a snapshot of filesystem state including modification times, permissions, and
file hashes which can then be used to compare against the current state of the filesystem to
detect modifications to the system.
Rationale:
By monitoring the filesystem state compromised files can be detected to prevent or limit
the exposure of accidental or malicious misconfigurations or modified binaries.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify aide is installed:
# rpm -q aide
aide-<version>
Remediation:
Run the following command to install AIDE:
# dnf install aide
Configure AIDE as appropriate for your environment. Consult the AIDE documentation for
options.
Initialize AIDE:
Run the following commands:
# aide --init
# mv /var/lib/aide/aide.db.new.gz /var/lib/aide/aide.db.gz
References:
1. AIDE stable manual: http://aide.sourceforge.net/stable/manual.html
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The prelinking feature can interfere with AIDE because it alters binaries to speed up their
start up times. Run prelink -ua to restore the binaries to their prelinked state, thus
avoiding false positives from AIDE.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
3.14 Log Sensitive Data Access

v8
Log sensitive data access, including modification and disposal.
●
14.9 Enforce Detail Logging for Access or Changes to

Sensitive Data
v7 Enforce detailed audit logging for access to sensitive data or changes to sensitive ●
data (utilizing tools such as File Integrity Monitoring or Security Information and
Event Monitoring).
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1.4.2 Ensure filesystem integrity is regularly checked (Automated)
Description:
Periodic checking of the filesystem integrity is needed to detect changes to the filesystem.
Rationale:
Periodic file checking allows the system administrator to determine on a regular basis if
critical files have been changed in an unauthorized fashion.
Audit:
Run the following commands to verify a cron job scheduled to run the aide check.
# grep -Ers '^([^#]+\s+)?(\/usr\/s?bin\/|^\s*)aide(\.wrapper)?\s(--?\S+\s)*(-

-(check|update)|\$AIDEARGS)\b' /etc/cron.* /etc/crontab /var/spool/cron/
Ensure a cron job in compliance with site policy is returned.

OR run the following commands to verify that aidcheck.service and aidcheck.timer are
enabled and aidcheck.timer is running
# systemctl is-enabled aidecheck.service
# systemctl is-enabled aidecheck.timer

# systemctl status aidecheck.timer
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Remediation:
If cron will be used to schedule and run aide check

run the following command:
# crontab -u root -e
Add the following line to the crontab:
0 5 * * * /usr/sbin/aide --check
OR if aidecheck.service and aidecheck.timer will be used to schedule and run aide check:
Create or edit the file /etc/systemd/system/aidecheck.service and add the following
lines:
[Unit]
Description=Aide Check
[Service]
Type=simple
ExecStart=/usr/sbin/aide --check
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
Create or edit the file /etc/systemd/system/aidecheck.timer and add the following lines:
[Unit]
Description=Aide check every day at 5AM
[Timer]
OnCalendar=*-*-* 05:00:00
Unit=aidecheck.service
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
# chown root:root /etc/systemd/system/aidecheck.*

# chmod 0644 /etc/systemd/system/aidecheck.*
# systemctl daemon-reload
# systemctl enable aidecheck.service

# systemctl --now enable aidecheck.timer
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References:
1. https://github.com/konstruktoid/hardening/blob/master/config/aidecheck.servic
e
2. https://github.com/konstruktoid/hardening/blob/master/config/aidecheck.timer
The checking in this recommendation occurs every day at 5am. Alter the frequency and
time of the checks in compliance with site policy.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
3.14 Log Sensitive Data Access

v8
Log sensitive data access, including modification and disposal.
●

Sensitive Data
Event Monitoring).
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1.5 Secure Boot Settings
The recommendations in this section focus on securing the bootloader and settings
involved in the boot process directly.
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1.5.1 Ensure permissions on bootloader config are configured
(Automated)
Description:
The grub configuration file contains information on boot settings and passwords for
unlocking boot options.
The grub configuration is usually grub.cfg and grubenv stored in /boot/grub2/`
Rationale:
Setting the permissions to read and write for root only prevents non-root users from
seeing the boot parameters or changing them. Non-root users who read the boot
parameters may be able to identify weaknesses in security upon boot and be able to exploit
them.
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Audit:
Run the following script to verify correct permissions, ownership, and group for grub.cfg
and if it exists, user.cfg:
#!/bin/bash
tst1="" tst2="" tst3="" tst4="" test1="" test2="" efidir="" gbdir=""

grubdir="" grubfile="" userfile=""
efidir=$(find /boot/efi/EFI/* -type d -not -name 'BOOT')
gbdir=$(find /boot -maxdepth 1 -type d -name 'grub*')
for file in "$efidir"/grub.cfg "$efidir"/grub.conf; do
[ -f "$file" ] && grubdir="$efidir" && grubfile=$file
done
if [ -z "$grubdir" ]; then
for file in "$gbdir"/grub.cfg "$gbdir"/grub.conf; do
[ -f "$file" ] && grubdir="$gbdir" && grubfile=$file
done
fi
userfile="$grubdir/user.cfg"
stat -c "%a" "$grubfile" | grep -Pq '^\h*[0-7]00$' && tst1=pass
output="Permissions on \"$grubfile\" are \"$(stat -c "%a" "$grubfile")\""
stat -c "%u:%g" "$grubfile" | grep -Pq '^\h*0:0$' && tst2=pass
output2="\"$grubfile\" is owned by \"$(stat -c "%U" "$grubfile")\" and
belongs to group \"$(stat -c "%G" "$grubfile")\""
[ "$tst1" = pass ] && [ "$tst2" = pass ] && test1=pass
if [ -f "$userfile" ]; then
stat -c "%a" "$userfile" | grep -Pq '^\h*[0-7]00$' && tst3=pass
output3="Permissions on \"$userfile\" are \"$(stat -c "%a" "$userfile")\""
stat -c "%u:%g" "$userfile" | grep -Pq '^\h*0:0$' && tst4=pass
output4="\"$userfile\" is owned by \"$(stat -c "%U" "$userfile")\" and
belongs to group \"$(stat -c "%G" "$userfile")\""
[ "$tst3" = pass ] && [ "$tst4" = pass ] && test2=pass
else
test2=pass
fi
[ "$test1" = pass ] && [ "$test2" = pass ] && passing=true
# If passing is true we pass
if [ "$passing" = true ] ; then
echo "PASSED:"
echo "$output"
echo "$output2"
[ -n "$output3" ] && echo "$output3"
else
# print the reason why we are failing
echo "FAILED:"
echo "$output"
echo "$output2"
fi
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Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on your grub configuration
file(s):
# chown root:root /boot/grub2/grub.cfg

# test -f /boot/grub2/user.cfg && chown root:root /boot/grub2/user.cfg
# chmod og-rwx /boot/grub2/grub.cfg
# test -f /boot/grub2/user.cfg && chmod og-rwx /boot/grub2/user.cfg
OR If the system uses UEFI, edit /etc/fstab and add the fmask=0077 option:
Example:
<device> /boot/efi vfat defaults,umask=0027,fmask=0077,uid=0,gid=0 0 0
Note: This may require a re-boot to enable the change
This recommendation is designed around the grub bootloader, if LILO or another

bootloader is in use in your environment enact equivalent settings.
Replace /boot/grub2/grub.cfg and /boot/grub2/grubenv with the appropriate

configuration file(s) for your environment
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.5.2 Ensure bootloader password is set (Automated)
Description:
Setting the boot loader password will require that anyone rebooting the system must enter
a password before being able to set command line boot parameters
Rationale:
Requiring a boot password upon execution of the boot loader will prevent an unauthorized
user from entering boot parameters or changing the boot partition. This prevents users
from weakening security (e.g. turning off SELinux at boot time).
Impact:
If password protection is enabled, only the designated superuser can edit a Grub 2 menu
item by pressing "e" or access the GRUB 2 command line by pressing "c"
If GRUB 2 is set up to boot automatically to a password-protected menu entry the user has
no option to back out of the password prompt to select another menu entry. Holding the
SHIFT key will not display the menu in this case. The user must enter the correct username
and password. If unable, the configuration files will have to be edited via the LiveCD or
other means to fix the problem
You can add --unrestricted to the menu entries to allow the system to boot without
entering a password. Password will still be required to edit menu items.
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Audit:
Run the following script to verify the bootloader password has been set:
#!/bin/bash
tst1="" tst2="" output=""

if [ -f "$efidir"/grub.cfg ]; then
grubdir="$efidir" && grubfile="$efidir/grub.cfg"
elif [ -f "$gbdir"/grub.cfg ]; then
grubdir="$gbdir" && grubfile="$gbdir/grub.cfg"
fi
userfile="$grubdir/user.cfg"
[ -f "$userfile" ] && grep -Pq '^\h*GRUB2_PASSWORD\h*=\h*.+$' "$userfile" &&
output="\n PASSED: bootloader password set in \"$userfile\"\n\n"
if [ -z "$output" ] && [ -f "$grubfile" ]; then
grep -Piq '^\h*set\h+superusers\h*=\h*"?[^"\n\r]+"?(\h+.*)?$' "$grubfile"
&& tst1=pass
grep -Piq '^\h*password\h+\H+\h+.+$' "$grubfile" && tst2=pass
[ "$tst1" = pass ] && [ "$tst2" = pass ] && output="\n\n*** PASSED:
bootloader password set in \"$grubfile\" ***\n\n"
fi
[ -n "$output" ] && echo -e "$output" || echo -e "\n\n *** FAILED: bootloader
password is not set ***\n\n"
Remediation:
Create an encrypted password with grub2-setpassword :
# grub2-setpassword
Enter password: <password>

Confirm password: <password>
Run the following command to update the grub2 configuration:
# grub2-mkconfig -o /boot/grub2/grub.cfg
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This recommendation is designed around the grub2 bootloader, if LILO or another

Replace `/boot/grub2/grub.cfg with the appropriate grub configuration file for your
environment
The superuser/user information and password do not have to be contained in the

/etc/grub.d/00_header file. The information can be placed in any /etc/grub.d file as long as
that file is incorporated into grub.cfg. The user may prefer to enter this data into a custom
file, such as /etc/grub.d/40_custom so it is not overwritten should the Grub package be
updated. If placing the information in a custom file, do not include the "cat << EOF" and
"EOF" lines as the content is automatically added from these files.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.5.3 Ensure authentication required for single user mode (Automated)
Description:
Single user mode (rescue mode) is used for recovery when the system detects an issue
during boot or by manual selection from the bootloader.
Rationale:
Requiring authentication in single user mode (rescue mode) prevents an unauthorized user
from rebooting the system into single user to gain root privileges without credentials.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify that /sbin/sulogin or /usr/sbin/sulogin is used
as shown:
# grep /systemd-sulogin-shell /usr/lib/systemd/system/rescue.service
ExecStart=-/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-sulogin-shell rescue
# grep /systemd-sulogin-shell /usr/lib/systemd/system/emergency.service
ExecStart=-/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-sulogin-shell emergency
Remediation:
Edit /usr/lib/systemd/system/rescue.service and add/modify the following line:
ExecStart=-/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-sulogin-shell rescue
Edit /usr/lib/systemd/system/emergency.service and add/modify the following line:
ExecStart=-/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-sulogin-shell emergency
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.6 Additional Process Hardening
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1.6.1 Ensure core dumps are restricted (Automated)
Description:
A core dump is the memory of an executable program. It is generally used to determine

why a program aborted. It can also be used to glean confidential information from a core
file. The system provides the ability to set a soft limit for core dumps, but this can be
overridden by the user.
Rationale:
Setting a hard limit on core dumps prevents users from overriding the soft variable. If core
dumps are required, consider setting limits for user groups (see limits.conf(5) ). In
addition, setting the fs.suid_dumpable variable to 0 will prevent setuid programs from
dumping core.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify output matches:
# grep -E "^\s*\*\s+hard\s+core" /etc/security/limits.conf

/etc/security/limits.d/*
* hard core 0
# sysctl fs.suid_dumpable
fs.suid_dumpable = 0
# grep "fs\.suid_dumpable" /etc/sysctl.conf /etc/sysctl.d/*
Run the following command to check if systemd-coredump is installed:
# systemctl is-enabled coredump.service
If enabled or disabled is returned systemd-coredump is installed
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Remediation:
Add the following line to /etc/security/limits.conf or a /etc/security/limits.d/*

file:
* hard core 0
Set the following parameter in /etc/sysctl.conf or a /etc/sysctl.d/* file:
Run the following command to set the active kernel parameter:
# sysctl -w fs.suid_dumpable=0
If systemd-coredump is installed:
edit /etc/systemd/coredump.conf and add/modify the following lines:
Storage=none
ProcessSizeMax=0
Run the command:
systemctl daemon-reload
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.6.2 Ensure address space layout randomization (ASLR) is enabled
(Automated)
Description:
Address space layout randomization (ASLR) is an exploit mitigation technique which

randomly arranges the address space of key data areas of a process.
Rationale:
Randomly placing virtual memory regions will make it difficult to write memory page
exploits as the memory placement will be consistently shifting.
Audit:
# sysctl kernel.randomize_va_space
kernel.randomize_va_space = 2
# grep "kernel\.randomize_va_space" /etc/sysctl.conf /etc/sysctl.d/*
Remediation:
Run the following command to set the active kernel parameter:
# sysctl -w kernel.randomize_va_space=2
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
10.5 Enable Anti-Exploitation Features

Enable anti-exploitation features on enterprise assets and software, where possible,
v8
such as Microsoft® Data Execution Prevention (DEP), Windows® Defender Exploit
● ●
Guard (WDEG), or Apple® System Integrity Protection (SIP) and Gatekeeper™.
8.3 Enable Operating System Anti-Exploitation Features/

Deploy Anti-Exploit Technologies
v7 Enable anti-exploitation features such as Data Execution Prevention (DEP) or ● ●
Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) that are available in an operating system
or deploy appropriate toolkits that can be configured to apply protection to a broader
set of applications and executables.
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1.7 Mandatory Access Control
Mandatory Access Control (MAC) provides an additional layer of access restrictions to
processes on top of the base Discretionary Access Controls. By restricting how processes
can access files and resources on a system the potential impact from vulnerabilities in the
processes can be reduced.
Impact: Mandatory Access Control limits the capabilities of applications and daemons on a
system, while this can prevent unauthorized access the configuration of MAC can be
complex and difficult to implement correctly preventing legitimate access from occurring.
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1.7.1 Configure SELinux
SELinux implements Mandatory Access Control (MAC). Every process and system resource
has a special security label called an SELinux context. A SELinux context, sometimes
referred to as an SELinux label, is an identifier which abstracts away the system-level
details and focuses on the security properties of the entity. Not only does this provide a
consistent way of referencing objects in the SELinux policy, but it also removes any
ambiguity that can be found in other identification methods. For example, a file can have
multiple valid path names on a system that makes use of bind mounts.
The SELinux policy uses these contexts in a series of rules which define how processes can
interact with each other and the various system resources. By default, the policy does not
allow any interaction unless a rule explicitly grants access.
In CentOS Linux 8, system services are controlled by the systemd daemon; systemd starts
and stops all services, and users and processes communicate with systemd using the
systemctl utility. The systemd daemon can consult the SELinux policy and check the label of
the calling process and the label of the unit file that the caller tries to manage, and then ask
SELinux whether or not the caller is allowed the access. This approach strengthens access
control to critical system capabilities, which include starting and stopping system services.
This automatically limits the damage that the software can do to files accessible by the
calling user. The user does not need to take any action to gain this benefit. For an action to
occur, both the traditional DAC permissions must be satisfied as well as the SELinux MAC
rules. The action will not be allowed if either one of these models does not permit the
action. In this way, SELinux rules can only make a system's permissions more restrictive
and secure. SELinux requires a complex policy to allow all the actions required of a system
under normal operation. Two such policies have been designed for use with CentOS Linux 8
and are included with the system: targeted and mls. These are described as follows:
 targeted: targeted processes run in their own domain, called a confined domain. In
a confined domain, the files that a targeted process has access to are limited. If a
confined process is compromised by an attacker, the attacker’s access to resources
and the possible damage they can do is also limited. SELinux denies access to these
resources and logs the denial.
 mls: implements Multi-Level Security (MLS), which introduces even more kinds of
labels (sensitivity and category) and rules that govern access based on these.
This section provides guidance for the configuration of the targeted policy.
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Notes:
 Remember that SELinux policy rules are checked after DAC rules. SELinux policy
rules are not used if DAC rules deny access first, which means that no SELinux denial
is logged if the traditional DAC rules prevent the access.
 This section only applies if SELinux is in use on the system. Additional Mandatory
Access Control systems exist.
 To avoid incorrect SELinux labeling and subsequent problems, ensure that you start
services using a systemctl start command.
References:
1. NSA SELinux resources:

1. http://www.nsa.gov/research/selinux
2. http://www.nsa.gov/research/selinux/list.shtml
2. Fedora SELinux resources:
1. FAQ: http://docs.fedoraproject.org/selinux-faq
2. User Guide: https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-
us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/8/html-single/using_selinux/index
3. Managing Services Guide: http://docs.fedoraproject.org/selinux-managing-
confined-services-guide
3. SELinux Project web page and wiki:
1. http://www.selinuxproject.org
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1.7.1.1 Ensure SELinux is installed (Automated)
Description:
SELinux provides Mandatory Access Control.
Rationale:
Without a Mandatory Access Control system installed only the default Discretionary Access
Control system will be available.
Audit:
Verify SELinux is installed.

# rpm -q libselinux
libselinux-<version>
Remediation:
Run the following command to install SELinux:
# dnf install libselinux
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

Configure data access control lists based on a user’s need to know. Apply data
v8
access control lists, also known as access permissions, to local and remote file systems,
● ● ●
14.6 Protect Information through Access Control Lists

Protect all information stored on systems with file system, network share, claims,
v7 application, or database specific access control lists. These controls will enforce the ● ● ●
principle that only authorized individuals should have access to the information based
on their need to access the information as a part of their responsibilities.
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1.7.1.2 Ensure SELinux is not disabled in bootloader configuration
(Automated)
Description:
Configure SELINUX to be enabled at boot time and verify that it has not been overwritten
by the grub boot parameters.
Rationale:
SELinux must be enabled at boot time in your grub configuration to ensure that the
controls it provides are not overridden.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that no linux line has the selinux=0 or enforcing=0
parameters set:
# grep -E 'kernelopts=(\S+\s+)*(selinux=0|enforcing=0)+\b'
/boot/grub2/grubenv
Nothing should be returned
Remediation:
Edit /etc/default/grub and remove all instances of selinux=0 and enforcing=0 from all
CMDLINE_LINUX parameters:
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""
This recommendation is designed around the grub 2 bootloader, if LILO or another

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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

112 | P a g e
1.7.1.3 Ensure SELinux policy is configured (Automated)
Description:
Configure SELinux to meet or exceed the default targeted policy, which constrains daemons
and system software only.
Rationale:
Security configuration requirements vary from site to site. Some sites may mandate a
policy that is stricter than the default policy, which is perfectly acceptable. This item is
intended to ensure that at least the default recommendations are met.
Audit:
Run the following commands and ensure output matches either " targeted " or " mls ":
# grep -E '^\s*SELINUXTYPE=(targeted|mls)\b' /etc/selinux/config
SELINUXTYPE=targeted
# sestatus | grep Loaded
Loaded policy name: targeted
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/selinux/config file to set the SELINUXTYPE parameter:
SELINUXTYPE=targeted
If your organization requires stricter policies, ensure that they are set in the
/etc/selinux/config file.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

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1.7.1.4 Ensure the SELinux state is enforcing (Automated)
Description:
Set SELinux to enable when the system is booted.
Rationale:
SELinux must be enabled at boot time to ensure that the controls it provides are in effect at
all times.
Audit:
Run the following commands and ensure output matches:
# grep -E '^\s*SELINUX=enforcing' /etc/selinux/config

SELINUX=enforcing
# sestatus
SELinux status: enabled
Current mode: enforcing
Mode from config file: enforcing
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/selinux/config file to set the SELINUX parameter:
SELINUX=enforcing
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

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1.7.1.5 Ensure no unconfined services exist (Automated)
Description:
Unconfined processes run in unconfined domains
Rationale:
For unconfined processes, SELinux policy rules are applied, but policy rules exist that allow
processes running in unconfined domains almost all access. Processes running in
unconfined domains fall back to using DAC rules exclusively. If an unconfined process is
compromised, SELinux does not prevent an attacker from gaining access to system
resources and data, but of course, DAC rules are still used. SELinux is a security
enhancement on top of DAC rules – it does not replace them
Audit:
Run the following command and verify not output is produced:
# ps -eZ | grep unconfined_service_t
Remediation:
Investigate any unconfined processes found during the audit action. They may need to have
an existing security context assigned to them or a policy built for them.
Occasionally certain daemons such as backup or centralized management software may

require running unconfined. Any such software should be carefully analyzed and
documented before such an exception is made.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
access control lists, also known as access permissions, to local and remote file
● ● ●
systems, databases, and applications.
9.2 Ensure Only Approved Ports, Protocols and Services Are

v7 Running ● ●
Ensure that only network ports, protocols, and services listening on a system with
validated business needs, are running on each system.
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1.7.1.6 Ensure SETroubleshoot is not installed (Automated)
Description:
The SETroubleshoot service notifies desktop users of SELinux denials through a user-
friendly interface. The service provides important information around configuration errors,
unauthorized intrusions, and other potential errors.
Rationale:
The SETroubleshoot service is an unnecessary daemon to have running on a server,

especially if X Windows is disabled.
Audit:
Verify setroubleshoot is not installed.

# rpm -q setroubleshoot
package setroubleshoot is not installed
Remediation:
Run the following command to uninstall setroubleshoot:
# dnf remove setroubleshoot
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
4.8 Uninstall or Disable Unnecessary Services on Enterprise

v8 Assets and Software ● ●
Uninstall or disable unnecessary services on enterprise assets and software, such as
an unused file sharing service, web application module, or service function.

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1.7.1.7 Ensure the MCS Translation Service (mcstrans) is not installed
(Automated)
Description:
The mcstransd daemon provides category label information to client processes requesting
information. The label translations are defined in /etc/selinux/targeted/setrans.conf
Rationale:
Since this service is not used very often, remove it to reduce the amount of potentially
vulnerable code running on the system.
Audit:
Verify mcstrans is not installed.

# rpm -q mcstrans
package mcstrans is not installed
Remediation:
Run the following command to uninstall mcstrans:
# dnf remove mcstrans
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

Uninstall or disable unnecessary services on enterprise assets and software, such
as an unused file sharing service, web application module, or service function.

v7 Running ● ●
Ensure that only network ports, protocols, and services listening on a system
with validated business needs, are running on each system.
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1.8 Warning Banners
Presenting a warning message prior to the normal user login may assist in the prosecution
of trespassers on the computer system. Changing some of these login banners also has the
side effect of hiding OS version information and other detailed system information from
attackers attempting to target specific exploits at a system.
Guidelines published by the US Department of Defense require that warning messages

include at least the name of the organization that owns the system, the fact that the system
is subject to monitoring and that such monitoring is in compliance with local statutes, and
that use of the system implies consent to such monitoring. It is important that the
organization's legal counsel review the content of all messages before any system
modifications are made, as these warning messages are inherently site-specific. More
information (including citations of relevant case law) can be found at
http://www.justice.gov/criminal/cybercrime/
Note: The text provided in the remediation actions for these items is intended as an
example only. Please edit to include the specific text for your organization as approved by
your legal department.
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1.8.1 Command Line Warning Banners
The /etc/motd, /etc/issue, and /etc/issue.net files govern warning banners for
standard command line logins for both local and remote users.
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1.8.1.1 Ensure message of the day is configured properly (Automated)
Description:
The contents of the /etc/motd file are displayed to users after login and function as a
message of the day for authenticated users.
Unix-based systems have typically displayed information about the OS release and patch
level upon logging in to the system. This information can be useful to developers who are
developing software for a particular OS platform. If mingetty(8) supports the following
options, they display operating system information: \m - machine architecture \r -
operating system release \s - operating system name \v - operating system version
Rationale:
Warning messages inform users who are attempting to login to the system of their legal
status regarding the system and must include the name of the organization that owns the
system and any monitoring policies that are in place. Displaying OS and patch level
information in login banners also has the side effect of providing detailed system
information to attackers attempting to target specific exploits of a system. Authorized users
can easily get this information by running the " uname -a " command once they have logged
in.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the contents match site policy:
# cat /etc/motd
Run the following command and verify no results are returned:
# grep -E -i "(\\\v|\\\r|\\\m|\\\s|$(grep 'ÎD=' /etc/os-release | cut -d= -

f2 | sed -e 's/"//g'))" /etc/motd
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Remediation:
Edit the /etc/motd file with the appropriate contents according to your site policy, remove
any instances of \m , \r , \s , \v or references to the OS platform
OR
If the motd is not used, this file can be removed.
Run the following command to remove the motd file:
# rm /etc/motd
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.8.1.2 Ensure local login warning banner is configured properly
(Automated)
Description:
The contents of the /etc/issue file are displayed to users prior to login for local terminals.
operating system release \s - operating system name \v - operating system version - or the
operating system's name
Rationale:
in.
Audit:
# cat /etc/issue

f2 | sed -e 's/"//g'))" /etc/issue
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Remediation:
Edit the /etc/issue file with the appropriate contents according to your site policy,
remove any instances of \m , \r , \s , \v or references to the OS platform
# echo "Authorized uses only. All activity may be monitored and reported." >
/etc/issue
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.8.1.3 Ensure remote login warning banner is configured properly
(Automated)
Description:
The contents of the /etc/issue.net file are displayed to users prior to login for remote
connections from configured services.
operating system release \s - operating system name \v - operating system version
Rationale:
in.
Audit:
# cat /etc/issue.net

f2 | sed -e 's/"//g'))" /etc/issue.net
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Remediation:
Edit the /etc/issue.net file with the appropriate contents according to your site policy,
remove any instances of \m , \r , \s , \v or references to the OS platform
# echo "Authorized uses only. All activity may be monitored and reported." >
/etc/issue.net
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.8.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/motd are configured (Automated)
Description:
The contents of the /etc/motd file are displayed to users after login and function as a
message of the day for authenticated users.
Rationale:
If the /etc/motd file does not have the correct ownership it could be modified by
unauthorized users with incorrect or misleading information.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify Uid and Gid are both 0/root and Access is 644 :
# stat /etc/motd
Access: (0644/-rw-r--r--) Uid: ( 0/ root) Gid: ( 0/ root)
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set permissions on /etc/motd :
# chown root:root /etc/motd
# chmod u-x,go-wx /etc/motd
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7 Maintain documented, standard security configuration standards for all ● ● ●
authorized operating systems and software.
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1.8.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/issue are configured (Automated)
Description:
The contents of the /etc/issue file are displayed to users prior to login for local terminals.
Rationale:
If the /etc/issue file does not have the correct ownership it could be modified by
Audit:
# stat /etc/issue
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set permissions on /etc/issue :
# chown root:root /etc/issue
# chmod u-x,go-wx /etc/issue
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

133 | P a g e
1.8.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/issue.net are configured
(Automated)
Description:
The contents of the /etc/issue.net file are displayed to users prior to login for remote
connections from configured services.
Rationale:
If the /etc/issue.net file does not have the correct ownership it could be modified by
Audit:
# stat /etc/issue.net
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set permissions on /etc/issue.net :
# chown root:root /etc/issue.net
# chmod u-x,go-wx /etc/issue.net
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

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1.8.2 Ensure GDM login banner is configured (Automated)
Description:
GDM is the GNOME Display Manager which handles graphical login for GNOME based
systems.
Rationale:
system and any monitoring policies that are in place.
Audit:
If GDM is installed on the system verify that /etc/gdm/greeter.dconf-defaults file exists

and contains the following:
[org/gnome/login-screen]
banner-message-enable=true
banner-message-text='<banner message>'
Remediation:
Edit or create the file /etc/gdm/greeter.dconf-defaults and add the following:
[org/gnome/login-screen]
banner-message-enable=true
banner-message-text='Authorized uses only. All activity may be monitored and
reported.'
Additional options and sections may appear in the /etc/dconf/db/gdm.d/01-banner-

message file.
If a different GUI login service is in use, consult your documentation and apply an
equivalent banner.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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1.9 Ensure updates, patches, and additional security software are
installed (Manual)
Description:
Periodically patches are released for included software either due to security flaws or to
include additional functionality.
Rationale:
Newer patches may contain security enhancements that would not be available through the
latest full update. As a result, it is recommended that the latest software patches be used to
take advantage of the latest functionality. As with any software installation, organizations
need to determine if a given update meets their requirements and verify the compatibility
and supportability of any additional software against the update revision that is selected.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify there are no updates or patches to install:
# dnf check-update
Remediation:
Use your package manager to update all packages on the system according to site policy.
The following command will install all available updates:
# dnf update
Site policy may mandate a testing period before install onto production systems for
available updates.
# dnf check-update
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version



Management Tools
vendor.
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1.10 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is not legacy (Automated)
Description:
The system-wide crypto-policies followed by the crypto core components allow

consistently deprecating and disabling algorithms system-wide.
The individual policy levels (DEFAULT, LEGACY, FUTURE, and FIPS) are included in the
crypto-policies(7) package.
Rationale:
If the Legacy system-wide crypto policy is selected, it includes support for TLS 1.0, TLS 1.1,
and SSH2 protocols or later. The algorithms DSA, 3DES, and RC4 are allowed, while RSA
and Diffie-Hellman parameters are accepted if larger than 1023-bits.
These legacy protocols and algorithms can make the system vulnerable to attacks,
including those listed in RFC 7457
Impact:
Environments that require compatibility with older insecure protocols may require the use
of the less secure LEGACY policy level.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify that the system-wide crypto policy is not LEGACY
# grep -E -i '^\s*LEGACY\s*(\s+#.*)?$' /etc/crypto-policies/config
Verify that no lines are returned
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Remediation:
Run the following command to change the system-wide crypto policy
# update-crypto-policies --set <CRYPTO POLICY>
Example:
# update-crypto-policies --set DEFAULT
Run the following to make the updated system-wide crypto policy active
# update-crypto-policies
Default Value:
DEFAULT
References:
1. CRYPTO-POLICIES(7)
2. https://access.redhat.com/articles/3642912#what-polices-are-provided-1
To switch the system to FIPS mode, run the following command:
fips-mode-setup --enable
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
3.10 Encrypt Sensitive Data in Transit

v8 Encrypt sensitive data in transit. Example implementations can include: ● ●
Transport Layer Security (TLS) and Open Secure Shell (OpenSSH).
14.4 Encrypt All Sensitive Information in Transit

v7
Encrypt all sensitive information in transit.
● ●
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1.11 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is FUTURE or FIPS (Automated)
Description:
The system-wide crypto-policies followed by the crypto core components allow

consistently deprecating and disabling algorithms system-wide.
The individual policy levels (DEFAULT, LEGACY, FUTURE, and FIPS) are included in the
crypto-policies(7) package.
Rationale:
If the Legacy system-wide crypto policy is selected, it includes support for TLS 1.0, TLS 1.1,
and SSH2 protocols or later. The algorithms DSA, 3DES, and RC4 are allowed, while RSA
and Diffie-Hellman parameters are accepted if larger than 1023-bits.
These legacy protocols and algorithms can make the system vulnerable to attacks,
including those listed in RFC 7457
FUTURE: Is a conservative security level that is believed to withstand any near-term future
attacks. This level does not allow the use of SHA-1 in signature algorithms. The RSA and
Diffie-Hellman parameters are accepted if larger than 3071 bits. The level provides at least
128-bit security
FIPS: Conforms to the FIPS 140-2 requirements. This policy is used internally by the fips-
mode-setup(8) tool which can switch the system into the FIPS 140-2 compliance mode. The
level provides at least 112-bit security
Impact:
Environments that require compatibility with older insecure protocols may require the use
of the less secure LEGACY policy level.
Systems configured to use system-wide crypto policy of Future or FIPS will no longer
accept connections from openSSH clients that do not support sha2 pub key types
openSSH clients may need to explicitly override and modify PubKeyAcceptedKeyTypes to

accept sha2 hashed pub keys
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Audit:
Run the following command to verify that the system-wide crypto policy is Future or FIPS
# grep -E -i '^\s*(FUTURE|FIPS)\s*(\s+#.*)?$' /etc/crypto-policies/config
Verify that either FUTURE or FIPS is returned
Remediation:
Run the following command to change the system-wide crypto policy
# update-crypto-policies --set FUTURE
OR
To switch the system to FIPS mode, run the following command:
# fips-mode-setup --enable
Default Value:
DEFAULT
References:
1. CRYPTO-POLICIES(7)
2. https://access.redhat.com/articles/3642912#what-polices-are-provided-1
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


v7
● ●
143 | P a g e
2 Services
While applying system updates and patches helps correct known vulnerabilities, one of the
best ways to protect the system against as yet unreported vulnerabilities is to disable all
services that are not required for normal system operation. This prevents the exploitation
of vulnerabilities discovered at a later date. If a service is not enabled, it cannot be
exploited. The actions in this section of the document provide guidance on some services
which can be safely disabled and under which circumstances, greatly reducing the number
of possible threats to the resulting system. Additionally some services which should remain
enabled but with secure configuration are covered as well as insecure service clients.
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2.1 inetd Services
inetd is a super-server daemon that provides internet services and passes connections to
configured services. While not commonly used inetd and any unneeded inetd based
services should be disabled if possible.
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2.1.1 Ensure xinetd is not installed (Automated)
Description:
The eXtended InterNET Daemon ( xinetd ) is an open source super daemon that replaced
the original inetd daemon. The xinetd daemon listens for well known services and
dispatches the appropriate daemon to properly respond to service requests.
Rationale:
If there are no xinetd services required, it is recommended that the package be removed.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify xinetd is not installed:
# rpm -q xinetd
package xinetd is not installed
Remediation:
Run the following command to remove xinetd:
# dnf remove xinetd
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2.2 Special Purpose Services
This section describes services that are installed on systems that specifically need to run
these services. If any of these services are not required, it is recommended that they be
disabled or deleted from the system to reduce the potential attack surface.
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2.2.1 Time Synchronization
It is recommended that physical systems and virtual guests lacking direct access to the
physical host's clock be configured to synchronize their time using chrony.
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2.2.1.1 Ensure time synchronization is in use (Manual)
Description:
System time should be synchronized between all systems in an environment. This is

typically done by establishing an authoritative time server or set of servers and having all
systems synchronize their clocks to them.
Rationale:
Time synchronization is important to support time sensitive security mechanisms like

Kerberos and also ensures log files have consistent time records across the enterprise,
which aids in forensic investigations.
Audit:
On physical systems or virtual systems where host based time synchronization is not
available verify that chrony is installed.
Run the following command to verify that chrony is installed
# rpm -q chrony
chrony-<VERSION>
On virtual systems where host based time synchronization is available consult your
virtualization software documentation and verify that host based synchronization is in use.
Remediation:
On physical systems or virtual systems where host based time synchronization is not
available install chrony:
Run the folloing command to install chrony:
# dnf install chrony
On virtual systems where host based time synchronization is available consult your
virtualization software documentation and setup host based synchronization.
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systemd-timesyncd is part of systemd. Some versions of systemd have been compiled

without systemd-timesycnd. On these distributions, chrony or NTP should be used instead
of systemd-timesycnd.
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8.4 Standardize Time Synchronization

v8 Standardize time synchronization. Configure at least two synchronized time ● ●
sources across enterprise assets, where supported.
6.1 Utilize Three Synchronized Time Sources

Use at least three synchronized time sources from which all servers and network
v7
devices retrieve time information on a regular basis so that timestamps in logs are
● ●
consistent.
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2.2.1.2 Ensure chrony is configured (Automated)
Description:
chrony is a daemon which implements the Network Time Protocol (NTP) and is designed to
synchronize system clocks across a variety of systems and use a source that is highly
accurate. More information on chrony can be found at http://chrony.tuxfamily.org/. chrony
can be configured to be a client and/or a server.
Rationale:
If chrony is in use on the system proper configuration is vital to ensuring time

synchronization is working properly.
This recommendation only applies if chrony is in use on the system.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify remote server is configured properly:
# grep -E "^(server|pool)" /etc/chrony.conf
server <remote-server>
Multiple servers may be configured.

Run the following command and verify the first field for the chronyd process is chrony:
# ps -ef | grep chronyd
chrony 491 1 0 20:32 ? 00:00:00 /usr/sbin/chronyd
Remediation:
Add or edit server or pool lines to /etc/chrony.conf as appropriate:
server <remote-server>
Configure chrony to run as the chrony user
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8.4 Standardize Time Synchronization

v8 Standardize time synchronization. Configure at least two synchronized time ● ●
sources across enterprise assets, where supported.
6.1 Utilize Three Synchronized Time Sources

Use at least three synchronized time sources from which all servers and network
v7
devices retrieve time information on a regular basis so that timestamps in logs are
● ●
consistent.
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2.2.2 Ensure X Window System is not installed (Automated)
Description:
The X Window System provides a Graphical User Interface (GUI) where users can have
multiple windows in which to run programs and various add on. The X Windows system is
typically used on workstations where users login, but not on servers where users typically
do not login.
Rationale:
Unless your organization specifically requires graphical login access via X Windows,
remove it to reduce the potential attack surface.
Impact:
Many Linux systems run applications which require a Java runtime. Some Linux Java
packages have a dependency on specific X Windows xorg-x11-fonts. One workaround to
avoid this dependency is to use the "headless" Java packages for your specific Java runtime,
if provided by your distribution.
Audit:
Run the following command to Verify X Windows System is not installed.
# rpm -qa xorg-x11-server-*
Remediation:
Run the following command to remove the X Windows System packages.
# dnf remove xorg-x11-server-*
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2.2.3 Ensure rsync service is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The rsyncd service can be used to synchronize files between systems over network links.
Rationale:
The rsyncd service presents a security risk as it uses unencrypted protocols for
communication.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify rsyncd is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled rsyncd
disabled
Verify result is not "enabled"
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable rsyncd:
# systemctl --now disable rsyncd

On some distributions the rsync service is known as rsync, not rsyncd.
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2.2.4 Ensure Avahi Server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
Avahi is a free zeroconf implementation, including a system for multicast DNS/DNS-SD

service discovery. Avahi allows programs to publish and discover services and hosts
running on a local network with no specific configuration. For example, a user can plug a
computer into a network and Avahi automatically finds printers to print to, files to look at
and people to talk to, as well as network services running on the machine.
Rationale:
Automatic discovery of network services is not normally required for system functionality.
It is recommended to disable the service to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify avahi-daemon.socket is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled avahi-daemon.socket
disabled

Run the following command to verify avahi-daemon.serivce is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled avahi-daemon
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following commands to disable avahi-daemon.socket and avahi-daemon.service:
# systemctl --now disable avahi-daemon.socket

# systemctl --now disable avahi-daemon.service
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2.2.5 Ensure SNMP Server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) server is used to listen for SNMP
commands from an SNMP management system, execute the commands or collect the
information and then send results back to the requesting system.
Rationale:
The SNMP server can communicate using SNMP v1, which transmits data in the clear and
does not require authentication to execute commands. Unless absolutely necessary, it is
recommended that the SNMP service not be used. If SNMP is required the server should be
configured to disallow SNMP v1.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify snmpd is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled snmpd
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable snmpd:
# systemctl --now disable snmpd

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2.2.6 Ensure HTTP Proxy Server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
Squid is a standard proxy server used in many distributions and environments.
Rationale:
If there is no need for a proxy server, it is recommended that the squid proxy be deleted to
reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify squid is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled squid
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable squid:
# systemctl --now disable squid

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2.2.7 Ensure Samba is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Samba daemon allows system administrators to configure their Linux systems to share
file systems and directories with Windows desktops. Samba will advertise the file systems
and directories via the Server Message Block (SMB) protocol. Windows desktop users will
be able to mount these directories and file systems as letter drives on their systems.
Rationale:
If there is no need to mount directories and file systems to Windows systems, then this
service can be deleted to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify smb is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled smb
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable smb:
# systemctl --now disable smb
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2.2.8 Ensure IMAP and POP3 server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
dovecot is an open source IMAP and POP3 server for Linux based systems.
Rationale:
Unless POP3 and/or IMAP servers are to be provided by this system, it is recommended
that the service be deleted to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify dovecot is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled dovecot
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable dovecot :
# systemctl --now disable dovecot

Several IMAP/POP3 servers exist and can use other service names. courier-imap and
cyrus-imap are example services that provide a mail server. These and other services
should also be audited.
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2.2.9 Ensure HTTP server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
HTTP or web servers provide the ability to host web site content.
Rationale:
Unless there is a need to run the system as a web server, it is recommended that the
package be deleted to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify httpd is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled httpd
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable httpd :
# systemctl --now disable httpd

Several httpd servers exist and can use other service names. apache, apache2, lighttpd,
and nginx are example services that provide an HTTP server. These and other services
should also be audited.
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2.2.10 Ensure FTP Server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) provides networked computers with the ability to transfer
files.
Rationale:
FTP does not protect the confidentiality of data or authentication credentials. It is

recommended SFTP be used if file transfer is required. Unless there is a need to run the
system as a FTP server (for example, to allow anonymous downloads), it is recommended
that the package be deleted to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify vsftpd is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled vsftpd
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable vsftpd :
# systemctl --now disable vsftpd

Additional FTP servers also exist and should be audited.
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2.2.11 Ensure DNS Server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Domain Name System (DNS) is a hierarchical naming system that maps names to IP
addresses for computers, services and other resources connected to a network.
Rationale:
Unless a system is specifically designated to act as a DNS server, it is recommended that the
package be deleted to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify named is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled named
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable named :
# systemctl --now disable named

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2.2.12 Ensure NFS is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Network File System (NFS) is one of the first and most widely distributed file systems
in the UNIX environment. It provides the ability for systems to mount file systems of other
servers through the network.
Rationale:
If the system does not export NFS shares, it is recommended that the NFS be disabled to
reduce the remote attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify the nfs-server is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled nfs-server
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following commands to disable the nfs-server:
# systemctl --now disable nfs-server

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2.2.13 Ensure RPC is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The rpcbind service maps Remote Procedure Call (RPC) services to the ports on which they
listen. RPC processes notify rpcbind when they start, registering the ports they are
listening on and the RPC program numbers they expect to serve. The client system then
contacts rpcbind on the server with a particular RPC program number. The rpcbind service
redirects the client to the proper port number so it can communicate with the requested
service.
Rationale:
If the system does not require rpc based services, it is recommended that rpcbind be
disabled to reduce the remote attack surface.
Impact:
Because RPC-based services rely on rpcbind to make all connections with incoming client
requests, rpcbind must be available before any of these services start
Audit:
Run the following command to verify rpcbind is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled rpcbind
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following commands to disable rpcbind:
# systemctl --now disable rpcbind
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2.2.14 Ensure LDAP server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) was introduced as a replacement for
NIS/YP. It is a service that provides a method for looking up information from a central
database.
Rationale:
If the system will not need to act as an LDAP server, it is recommended that the software be
disabled to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following commands to verify slapd is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled slapd
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable slapd :
# systemctl --now disable slapd
References:
1. For more detailed documentation on OpenLDAP, go to the project homepage at

http://www.openldap.org.

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2.2.15 Ensure DHCP Server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is a service that allows machines to be
dynamically assigned IP addresses.
Rationale:
Unless a system is specifically set up to act as a DHCP server, it is recommended that this
service be deleted to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify dhcpd is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled dhcpd
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable dhcpd:
# systemctl --now disable dhcpd
References:
1. More detailed documentation on DHCP is available at

http://www.isc.org/software/dhcp.

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2.2.16 Ensure CUPS is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Common Unix Print System (CUPS) provides the ability to print to both local and
network printers. A system running CUPS can also accept print jobs from remote systems
and print them to local printers. It also provides a web based remote administration
capability.
Rationale:
If the system does not need to print jobs or accept print jobs from other systems, it is
recommended that CUPS be disabled to reduce the potential attack surface.
Impact:
Disabling CUPS will prevent printing from the system, a common task for workstation
systems.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify cups is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled cups
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable cups:
# systemctl --now disable cups
References:
1. More detailed documentation on CUPS is available at the project homepage at

http://www.cups.org.
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2.2.17 Ensure NIS Server is not enabled (Automated)
Description:
The Network Information Service (NIS) (formally known as Yellow Pages) is a client-server
directory service protocol for distributing system configuration files. The NIS server is a
collection of programs that allow for the distribution of configuration files.
Rationale:
The NIS service is inherently an insecure system that has been vulnerable to DOS attacks,
buffer overflows and has poor authentication for querying NIS maps. NIS generally has
been replaced by such protocols as Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). It is
recommended that the service be disabled and other, more secure services be used
Audit:
Run the following command to verify ypserv is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled ypserv
disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable ypserv:
# systemctl --now disable ypserv

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2.2.18 Ensure mail transfer agent is configured for local-only mode
(Automated)
Description:
Mail Transfer Agents (MTA), such as sendmail and Postfix, are used to listen for incoming
mail and transfer the messages to the appropriate user or mail server. If the system is not
intended to be a mail server, it is recommended that the MTA be configured to only process
local mail.
Rationale:
The software for all Mail Transfer Agents is complex and most have a long history of
security issues. While it is important to ensure that the system can process local mail
messages, it is not necessary to have the MTA's daemon listening on a port unless the
server is intended to be a mail server that receives and processes mail from other systems.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify that the MTA is not listening on any non-loopback
address ( 127.0.0.1 or ::1 )
# ss -lntu | grep -E ':25\s' | grep -E -v '\s(127.0.0.1|::1):25\s'
Remediation:
Edit /etc/postfix/main.cf and add the following line to the RECEIVING MAIL section. If
the line already exists, change it to look like the line below:
inet_interfaces = loopback-only
Run the following command to restart postfix
# systemctl restart postfix
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This recommendation is designed around the postfix mail server, depending on your
environment you may have an alternative MTA installed such as sendmail. If this is the case
consult the documentation for your installed MTA to configure the recommended state.
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2.3 Service Clients
A number of insecure services exist. While disabling the servers prevents a local attack
against these services, it is advised to remove their clients unless they are required.
Note: This should not be considered a comprehensive list of insecure service clients. You
may wish to consider additions to those listed here for your environment.
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2.3.1 Ensure NIS Client is not installed (Automated)
Description:
The Network Information Service (NIS), formerly known as Yellow Pages, is a client-server
directory service protocol used to distribute system configuration files. The NIS client (
ypbind ) was used to bind a machine to an NIS server and receive the distributed
configuration files.
Rationale:
The NIS service is inherently an insecure system that has been vulnerable to DOS attacks,
buffer overflows and has poor authentication for querying NIS maps. NIS generally has
been replaced by such protocols as Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). It is
recommended that the service be removed.
Impact:
Many insecure service clients are used as troubleshooting tools and in testing
environments. Uninstalling them can inhibit capability to test and troubleshoot. If they are
required it is advisable to remove the clients after use to prevent accidental or intentional
misuse.
Audit:
Verify ypbind is not installed.

# rpm -q ypbind
package ypbind is not installed
Remediation:
Run the following command to Uninstall ypbind
# dnf remove ypbind
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2.3.2 Ensure telnet client is not installed (Automated)
Description:
The telnet package contains the telnet client, which allows users to start connections to
other systems via the telnet protocol.
Rationale:
The telnet protocol is insecure and unencrypted. The use of an unencrypted transmission
medium could allow an unauthorized user to steal credentials. The ssh package provides
an encrypted session and stronger security and is included in most Linux distributions.
Impact:
Many insecure service clients are used as troubleshooting tools and in testing
environments. Uninstalling them can inhibit capability to test and troubleshoot. If they are
required it is advisable to remove the clients after use to prevent accidental or intentional
misuse.
Audit:
Verify telnet is not installed.

# rpm -q telnet
package telnet is not installed
Remediation:
Run the following command to uninstall telnet
# dnf remove telnet
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4.5 Use Multifactor Authentication For All Administrative

v7 Access ● ●
Use multi-factor authentication and encrypted channels for all administrative
account access.
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2.3.3 Ensure LDAP client is not installed (Automated)
Description:
The Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) was introduced as a replacement for
NIS/YP. It is a service that provides a method for looking up information from a central
database.
Rationale:
If the system will not need to act as an LDAP client, it is recommended that the software be
removed to reduce the potential attack surface.
Impact:
Removing the LDAP client will prevent or inhibit using LDAP for authentication in your
environment.
Audit:
Verify openldap-clients is not installed.

# rpm -q openldap-clients
package openldap-clients is not installed
Remediation:
Run the following command to uninstall openldap-clients.
# dnf remove openldap-clients
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3 Network Configuration
This section provides guidance on for securing the network configuration of the system
through kernel parameters, access list control, and firewall settings.
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3.1 Network Parameters (Host Only)
The following network parameters are intended for use if the system is to act as a host
only. A system is considered host only if the system has a single interface, or has multiple
interfaces but will not be configured as a router.
Note:
 sysctl settings are defined through files in /usr/lib/sysctl.d/, /run/sysctl.d/,

and /etc/sysctl.d/.
 Files must have the the ".conf" extension.
 Vendors settings live in /usr/lib/sysctl.d/
 To override a whole file, create a new file with the same name in /etc/sysctl.d/
and put new settings there.
 To override only specific settings, add a file with a lexically later name in
/etc/sysctl.d/ and put new settings there.
 The paths where sysctl preload files usually exist
o /run/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /etc/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /usr/local/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /usr/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /lib/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /etc/sysctl.conf
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3.1.1 Ensure IP forwarding is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The net.ipv4.ip_forward and net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding flags are used to tell the

system whether it can forward packets or not.
Rationale:
Setting the flags to 0 ensures that a system with multiple interfaces (for example, a hard
proxy), will never be able to forward packets, and therefore, never serve as a router.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.ip_forward
net.ipv4.ip_forward = 0
# grep -E -s "^\s*net\.ipv4\.ip_forward\s*=\s*1" /etc/sysctl.conf

/etc/sysctl.d/*.conf /usr/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf /run/sysctl.d/*.conf
No value should be returned
IF IPv6 is enabled:
# sysctl net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding
net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding = 0
# grep -E -s "^\s*net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.forwarding\s*=\s*1" /etc/sysctl.conf

No value should be returned
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Remediation:
Run the following commands to restore the default parameters and set the active kernel
parameters:
# grep -Els "^\s*net\.ipv4\.ip_forward\s*=\s*1" /etc/sysctl.conf

/etc/sysctl.d/*.conf /usr/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf /run/sysctl.d/*.conf | while
read filename; do sed -ri "s/^\s*(net\.ipv4\.ip_forward\s*)(=)(\s*\S+\b).*$/#
*REMOVED* \1/" $filename; done; sysctl -w net.ipv4.ip_forward=0; sysctl -w
net.ipv4.route.flush=1
# grep -Els "^\s*net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.forwarding\s*=\s*1" /etc/sysctl.conf

read filename; do sed -ri
"s/^\s*(net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.forwarding\s*)(=)(\s*\S+\b).*$/# *REMOVED* \1/"
$filename; done; sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding=0; sysctl -w
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3.1.2 Ensure packet redirect sending is disabled (Automated)
Description:
ICMP Redirects are used to send routing information to other hosts. As a host itself does
not act as a router (in a host only configuration), there is no need to send redirects.
Rationale:
An attacker could use a compromised host to send invalid ICMP redirects to other router
devices in an attempt to corrupt routing and have users access a system set up by the
attacker as opposed to a valid system.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.all.send_redirects
net.ipv4.conf.all.send_redirects = 0
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.default.send_redirects
net.ipv4.conf.default.send_redirects = 0
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.all\.send_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

/etc/sysctl.d/*
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.default\.send_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

/etc/sysctl.d/*
net.ipv4.conf.default.send_redirects= 0
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Remediation:
Set the following parameters in /etc/sysctl.conf or a /etc/sysctl.d/* file:
net.ipv4.conf.default.send_redirects = 0
Run the following commands to set the active kernel parameters:
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.all.send_redirects=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.default.send_redirects=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.route.flush=1
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3.2 Network Parameters (Host and Router)
The following network parameters are intended for use on both host only and router
systems. A system acts as a router if it has at least two interfaces and is configured to
perform routing functions.
Note:
 sysctl settings are defined through files in /usr/lib/sysctl.d/, /run/sysctl.d/,

and /etc/sysctl.d/.
 Files must have the the ".conf" extension.
 Vendors settings live in /usr/lib/sysctl.d/
 To override a whole file, create a new file with the same name in /etc/sysctl.d/
and put new settings there.
 To override only specific settings, add a file with a lexically later name in
/etc/sysctl.d/ and put new settings there.
 The paths where sysctl preload files usually exist
o /run/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /etc/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /usr/local/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /usr/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /lib/sysctl.d/*.conf
o /etc/sysctl.conf
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3.2.1 Ensure source routed packets are not accepted (Automated)
Description:
In networking, source routing allows a sender to partially or fully specify the route packets
take through a network. In contrast, non-source routed packets travel a path determined
by routers in the network. In some cases, systems may not be routable or reachable from
some locations (e.g. private addresses vs. Internet routable), and so source routed packets
would need to be used.
Rationale:
Setting net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_source_route,
net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_source_route,
net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_source_route and
net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_source_route to 0 disables the system from accepting
source routed packets. Assume this system was capable of routing packets to Internet
routable addresses on one interface and private addresses on another interface. Assume
that the private addresses were not routable to the Internet routable addresses and vice
versa. Under normal routing circumstances, an attacker from the Internet routable
addresses could not use the system as a way to reach the private address systems. If,
however, source routed packets were allowed, they could be used to gain access to the
private address systems as the route could be specified, rather than rely on routing
protocols that did not allow this routing.
202 | P a g e
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_source_route
net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_source_route = 0
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_source_route
net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_source_route = 0
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.all\.accept_source_route" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_source_route= 0
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.default\.accept_source_route" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_source_route= 0
IF IPv6 is enabled:
# sysctl net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_source_route
# sysctl net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_source_route
# grep "net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.accept_source_route" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_source_route= 0
# grep "net\.ipv6\.conf\.default\.accept_source_route" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_source_route= 0
203 | P a g e
Remediation:
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_source_route=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_source_route=0
IF IPv6 is not disabled:

# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_source_route=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_source_route=0
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

204 | P a g e
3.2.2 Ensure ICMP redirects are not accepted (Automated)
Description:
ICMP redirect messages are packets that convey routing information and tell your host
(acting as a router) to send packets via an alternate path. It is a way of allowing an outside
routing device to update your system routing tables. By setting
net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_redirects and net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_redirects to 0,
the system will not accept any ICMP redirect messages, and therefore, won't allow
outsiders to update the system's routing tables.
Rationale:
Attackers could use bogus ICMP redirect messages to maliciously alter the system routing
tables and get them to send packets to incorrect networks and allow your system packets
to be captured.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_redirects
net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_redirects = 0
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_redirects
net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_redirects = 0
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.all\.accept_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_redirects= 0
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.default\.accept_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_redirects= 0
IF IPv6 is not disabled:

205 | P a g e
# sysctl net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_redirects
# sysctl net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_redirects
# grep "net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.accept_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_redirects= 0
# grep "net\.ipv6\.conf\.default\.accept_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_redirects= 0
Remediation:
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.all.accept_redirects=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.default.accept_redirects=0
IF IPv6 is not disabled

# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_redirects=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_redirects=0
206 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

207 | P a g e
3.2.3 Ensure secure ICMP redirects are not accepted (Automated)
Description:
Secure ICMP redirects are the same as ICMP redirects, except they come from gateways
listed on the default gateway list. It is assumed that these gateways are known to your
system, and that they are likely to be secure.
Rationale:
It is still possible for even known gateways to be compromised. Setting

net.ipv4.conf.all.secure_redirects to 0 protects the system from routing table
updates by possibly compromised known gateways.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.all.secure_redirects
net.ipv4.conf.all.secure_redirects = 0
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.default.secure_redirects
net.ipv4.conf.default.secure_redirects = 0
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.all\.secure_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

/etc/sysctl.d/*
net.ipv4.conf.all.secure_redirects= 0
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.default\.secure_redirects" /etc/sysctl.conf

/etc/sysctl.d/*
net.ipv4.conf.default.secure_redirects= 0
208 | P a g e
Remediation:
net.ipv4.conf.all.secure_redirects = 0
net.ipv4.conf.default.secure_redirects = 0
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.all.secure_redirects=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.default.secure_redirects=0
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

209 | P a g e
3.2.4 Ensure suspicious packets are logged (Automated)
Description:
When enabled, this feature logs packets with un-routable source addresses to the kernel
log.
Rationale:
Enabling this feature and logging these packets allows an administrator to investigate the
possibility that an attacker is sending spoofed packets to their system.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.all.log_martians
net.ipv4.conf.all.log_martians = 1
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.default.log_martians
net.ipv4.conf.default.log_martians = 1
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.all\.log_martians" /etc/sysctl.conf /etc/sysctl.d/*
# grep "net\.ipv4\.conf\.default\.log_martians" /etc/sysctl.conf

/etc/sysctl.d/*
210 | P a g e
Remediation:
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.all.log_martians=1
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.default.log_martians=1
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●
6.2 Activate audit logging

v7
Ensure that local logging has been enabled on all systems and networking devices.
● ● ●

v7
● ●
elements.
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3.2.5 Ensure broadcast ICMP requests are ignored (Automated)
Description:
Setting net.ipv4.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts to 1 will cause the system to ignore all

ICMP echo and timestamp requests to broadcast and multicast addresses.
Rationale:
Accepting ICMP echo and timestamp requests with broadcast or multicast destinations for
your network could be used to trick your host into starting (or participating) in a Smurf
attack. A Smurf attack relies on an attacker sending large amounts of ICMP broadcast
messages with a spoofed source address. All hosts receiving this message and responding
would send echo-reply messages back to the spoofed address, which is probably not
routable. If many hosts respond to the packets, the amount of traffic on the network could
be significantly multiplied.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts
net.ipv4.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts = 1
# grep -E -s "^\s*net\.ipv4\.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts\s*=\s*0"
/etc/sysctl.conf /etc/sysctl.d/*.conf /usr/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf
/run/sysctl.d/*.conf
212 | P a g e
Remediation:
Run the following command to restore the default parameters and set the active kernel
parameters:
# grep -Els "^\s*net\.ipv4\.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts\s*=\s*0"

/run/sysctl.d/*.conf | while read filename; do sed -ri
"s/^\s*(net\.ipv4\.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts\s*)(=)(\s*\S+\b).*$/#
*REMOVED* \1/" $filename; done; sysctl -w net.icmp_echo_ignore_broadcasts=1;
sysctl -w net.ipv4.route.flush=1
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

213 | P a g e
3.2.6 Ensure bogus ICMP responses are ignored (Automated)
Description:
Setting icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses to 1 prevents the kernel from logging bogus

responses (RFC-1122 non-compliant) from broadcast reframes, keeping file systems from
filling up with useless log messages.
Rationale:
Some routers (and some attackers) will send responses that violate RFC-1122 and attempt
to fill up a log file system with many useless error messages.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses
net.ipv4.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses = 1
# grep -E -s "^\s*net\.ipv4\.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses\s*=\s*0"
Remediation:
Run the following commands to restore the default parameters and set the active kernel
parameters:
# grep -Els "^\s*net\.ipv4\.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses\s*=\s*0"

/run/sysctl.d/*.conf | while read filename; do sed -ri
"s/^\s*(net\.ipv4\.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses\s*)(=)(\s*\S+\b).*$/#
*REMOVED* \1/" $filename; done; sysctl -w
net.ipv4.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses=1; sysctl -w
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Default Value:
net.ipv4.icmp_ignore_bogus_error_responses = 1
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

215 | P a g e
3.2.7 Ensure Reverse Path Filtering is enabled (Automated)
Description:
Setting net.ipv4.conf.all.rp_filter and net.ipv4.conf.default.rp_filter to 1 forces

the Linux kernel to utilize reverse path filtering on a received packet to determine if the
packet was valid. Essentially, with reverse path filtering, if the return packet does not go
out the same interface that the corresponding source packet came from, the packet is
dropped (and logged if log_martians is set).
Rationale:
Setting these flags is a good way to deter attackers from sending your system bogus
packets that cannot be responded to. One instance where this feature breaks down is if
asymmetrical routing is employed. This would occur when using dynamic routing protocols
(bgp, ospf, etc) on your system. If you are using asymmetrical routing on your system, you
will not be able to enable this feature without breaking the routing.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.all.rp_filter
net.ipv4.conf.all.rp_filter = 1
# sysctl net.ipv4.conf.default.rp_filter
net.ipv4.conf.default.rp_filter = 1
# grep -E -s "^\s*net\.ipv4\.conf\.all\.rp_filter\s*=\s*0" /etc/sysctl.conf

# grep -E -s "^\s*net\.ipv4\.conf\.default\.rp_filter\s*=\s*1"
216 | P a g e
Remediation:
Run the following command to restore the default net.ipv4.conf.all.rp_filter = 1

parameter and set the active kernel parameter:
# grep -Els "^\s*net\.ipv4\.conf\.all\.rp_filter\s*=\s*0" /etc/sysctl.conf

"s/^\s*(net\.ipv4\.net.ipv4.conf\.all\.rp_filter\s*)(=)(\s*\S+\b).*$/#
*REMOVED* \1/" $filename; done; sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.all.rp_filter=1;
sysctl -w net.ipv4.route.flush=1
net.ipv4.conf.default.rp_filter=1
Run the following commands to set the active kernel parameter:
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.conf.default.rp_filter=1
Default Value:
net.ipv4.conf.all.rp_filter = 1
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

217 | P a g e
3.2.8 Ensure TCP SYN Cookies is enabled (Automated)
Description:
When tcp_syncookies is set, the kernel will handle TCP SYN packets normally until the
half-open connection queue is full, at which time, the SYN cookie functionality kicks in. SYN
cookies work by not using the SYN queue at all. Instead, the kernel simply replies to the
SYN with a SYN|ACK, but will include a specially crafted TCP sequence number that
encodes the source and destination IP address and port number and the time the packet
was sent. A legitimate connection would send the ACK packet of the three way handshake
with the specially crafted sequence number. This allows the system to verify that it has
received a valid response to a SYN cookie and allow the connection, even though there is no
corresponding SYN in the queue.
Rationale:
Attackers use SYN flood attacks to perform a denial of service attacked on a system by
sending many SYN packets without completing the three way handshake. This will quickly
use up slots in the kernel's half-open connection queue and prevent legitimate connections
from succeeding. SYN cookies allow the system to keep accepting valid connections, even if
under a denial of service attack.
Audit:
# sysctl net.ipv4.tcp_syncookies
net.ipv4.tcp_syncookies = 1
# grep -E -r "^\s*net\.ipv4\.tcp_syncookies\s*=\s*[02]" /etc/sysctl.conf

218 | P a g e
Remediation:
Run the following command to restore the default parameter and set the active kernel
parameters:
# grep -Els "^\s*net\.ipv4\.tcp_syncookies\s*=\s*[02]*" /etc/sysctl.conf

"s/^\s*(net\.ipv4\.tcp_syncookies\s*)(=)(\s*\S+\b).*$/# *REMOVED* \1/"
$filename; done; sysctl -w net.ipv4.tcp_syncookies=1; sysctl -w
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

219 | P a g e
3.2.9 Ensure IPv6 router advertisements are not accepted (Automated)
Description:
This setting disables the system's ability to accept IPv6 router advertisements.
Rationale:
It is recommended that systems do not accept router advertisements as they could be

tricked into routing traffic to compromised machines. Setting hard routes within the
system (usually a single default route to a trusted router) protects the system from bad
routes.
Audit:
IF IPv6 is enabled:
# sysctl net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_ra
net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_ra = 0
# sysctl net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_ra
net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_ra = 0
# grep "net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.accept_ra" /etc/sysctl.conf /etc/sysctl.d/*
# grep "net\.ipv6\.conf\.default\.accept_ra" /etc/sysctl.conf /etc/sysctl.d/*
220 | P a g e
Remediation:
IF IPv6 is enabled:
# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.all.accept_ra=0
# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.default.accept_ra=0
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

221 | P a g e
3.3 Uncommon Network Protocols
The Linux kernel modules support several network protocols that are not commonly used.
If these protocols are not needed, it is recommended that they be disabled in the kernel.
Note: This should not be considered a comprehensive list of uncommon network protocols,
you may wish to consider additions to those listed here for your environment.
222 | P a g e
3.3.1 Ensure DCCP is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The Datagram Congestion Control Protocol (DCCP) is a transport layer protocol that
supports streaming media and telephony. DCCP provides a way to gain access to
congestion control, without having to do it at the application layer, but does not provide in-
sequence delivery.
Rationale:
If the protocol is not required, it is recommended that the drivers not be installed to reduce
the potential attack surface.
Audit:
# modprobe -n -v dccp
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep dccp

<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/dccp.conf
install dccp /bin/true
223 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


v7 Running ● ●
224 | P a g e
3.3.2 Ensure SCTP is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) is a transport layer protocol used to
support message oriented communication, with several streams of messages in one
connection. It serves a similar function as TCP and UDP, incorporating features of both. It is
message-oriented like UDP, and ensures reliable in-sequence transport of messages with
congestion control like TCP.
Rationale:
If the protocol is not being used, it is recommended that kernel module not be loaded,
disabling the service to reduce the potential attack surface.
Audit:
# modprobe -n -v sctp
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep sctp

<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/sctp.conf
install sctp /bin/true
225 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


v7 Running ● ●
226 | P a g e
3.3.3 Ensure RDS is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The Reliable Datagram Sockets (RDS) protocol is a transport layer protocol designed to
provide low-latency, high-bandwidth communications between cluster nodes. It was
developed by the Oracle Corporation.
Rationale:
Audit:
# modprobe -n -v rds
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep rds

<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/rds.conf
install rds /bin/true
227 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


v7 Running ● ●
228 | P a g e
3.3.4 Ensure TIPC is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The Transparent Inter-Process Communication (TIPC) protocol is designed to provide

communication between cluster nodes.
Rationale:
Audit:
# modprobe -n -v tipc
install /bin/true
# lsmod | grep tipc

<No output>
Remediation:

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/tipc.conf
install tipc /bin/true
229 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


v7 Running ● ●
230 | P a g e
3.4 Firewall Configuration
A firewall is a set of rules. When a data packet moves into or out of a protected network
space, its contents (in particular, information about its origin, target, and the protocol it
plans to use) are tested against the firewall rules to see if it should be allowed through
To provide a Host Based Firewall, the Linux kernel includes support for:
 Netfilter - A set of hooks inside the Linux kernel that allows kernel modules to
register callback functions with the network stack. A registered callback function is
then called back for every packet that traverses the respective hook within the
network stack. Includes the ip_tables, ip6_tables, arp_tables, and ebtables kernel
modules. These modules are some of the significant parts of the Netfilter hook
system.
 nftables - A subsystem of the Linux kernel providing filtering and classification of
network packets/datagrams/frames. nftables is supposed to replace certain parts of
Netfilter, while keeping and reusing most of it. nftables utilizes the building blocks
of the Netfilter infrastructure, such as the existing hooks into the networking stack,
connection tracking system, userspace queueing component, and logging
subsystem. Is available in Linux kernels 3.13 and newer.
In order to configure firewall rules for Netfilter or nftables, a firewall utility needs to be
installed. Guidance has been included for the following firewall utilities:
 FirewallD - Provides firewall features by acting as a front-end for the Linux kernel's
netfilter framework via the iptables backend. Starting in v0.6.0, FirewallD added
support for acting as a front-end for the Linux kernel's netfilter framework via the
nftables userspace utility, acting as an alternative to the nft command line program.
firewalld supports both IPv4 and IPv6 networks and can administer separate
firewall zones with varying degrees of trust as defined in zone profiles.
 nftables - Includes the nft utility for configuration of the nftables subsystem of the
Linux kernel
 iptables - Includes the iptables, ip6tables, arptables and ebtables utilities for
configuration Netfilter and the ip_tables, ip6_tables, arp_tables, and ebtables kernel
modules.
Note:
 Only one method should be used to configure a firewall on the system. Use of more
than one method could produce unexpected results.
 This section is intended only to ensure the resulting firewall rules are in place, not how
they are configured.
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3.4.1 Ensure Firewall software is installed
In order to configure Firewall protection for your system, a Firewall software package
needs to be installed.
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3.4.1.1 Ensure a Firewall package is installed (Automated)
Description:
A Firewall package should be selected. Most firewall configuration utilities operate as a

front end to nftables or iptables.
Rationale:
A Firewall package is required for firewall management and configuration.
Audit:
Run one of the following commands to verify the Firewall package is installed:
For firewalld:
# rpm -q firewalld
firewalld-<version>
For nftables:
# rpm -q nftables
nftables-<version>
For iptables:
# rpm -q iptables iptables-services
iptables-<version>
iptables-services-<version>
233 | P a g e
Remediation:
Run one of the following commands to install a Firewall package.

For firewalld:
# dnf install firewalld
For nftables:
# dnf install nftables
For iptables:
# dnf install iptables iptables-services
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
4.4 Implement and Manage a Firewall on Servers

Implement and manage a firewall on servers, where supported. Example
v8
implementations include a virtual firewall, operating system firewall, or a third-
● ● ●
party firewall agent.
9.4 Apply Host-based Firewalls or Port Filtering

Apply host-based firewalls or port filtering tools on end systems, with a default-
v7
deny rule that drops all traffic except those services and ports that are explicitly
● ● ●
allowed.
234 | P a g e
3.4.2 Configure firewalld
If nftables or iptables are being used in your environment, please follow the guidance
in their respective section and pass-over the guidance in this section.
firewalld (Dynamic Firewall Manager) provides a dynamically managed firewall with

support for network/firewall “zones” to assign a level of trust to a network and its
associated connections, interfaces or sources. It has support for IPv4, IPv6, Ethernet
bridges and also for IPSet firewall settings. There is a separation of the runtime and
permanent configuration options. It also provides an interface for services or applications
to add iptables, ip6tables and ebtables rules directly. This interface can also be used by
advanced users.
In the v0.6.0 release, firewalld gained support for using nftables as a firewall back-end.
Note: Configuration of a live system's firewall directly over a remote connection will often
result in being locked out.
235 | P a g e
3.4.2.1 Ensure firewalld service is enabled and running (Automated)
Description:
Ensure that the firewalld service is enabled to protect your system
Rationale:
firewalld (Dynamic Firewall Manager) tool provides a dynamically managed firewall. The
tool enables network/firewall zones to define the trust level of network connections
and/or interfaces. It has support both for IPv4 and IPv6 firewall settings. Also, it supports
Ethernet bridges and allow you to separate between runtime and permanent configuration
options. Finally, it supports an interface for services or applications to add firewall rules
directly
Impact:
Changing firewall settings while connected over network can result in being locked out of
the system.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify that firewalld is enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled firewalld
enabled
Run the following command to verify that firewalld is running
# firewall-cmd --state
running
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable and start firewalld
# systemctl --now enable firewalld
236 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ● ●
allowed.
237 | P a g e
3.4.2.2 Ensure iptables service is not enabled with firewalld
(Automated)
Description:
IPtables is an application that allows a system administrator to configure the IPv4 and IPv6
tables, chains and rules provided by the Linux kernel firewall.
IPtables is installed as a dependency with firewalld.
Rationale:
Running firewalld and IPtables concurrently may lead to conflict, therefore IPtables should
be stopped and masked when using firewalld.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify that iptables is not running:
# systemctl status iptables
Output should include:
Loaded: disabled (/dev/null; bad)

Active: inactive (dead)
Run the following command to verify that iptables is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled iptables
Output should not read enabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to stop and mask iptables
systemctl --now mask iptables
238 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●


v7
● ● ●
allowed.
239 | P a g e
3.4.2.3 Ensure nftables is not enabled with firewalld (Automated)
Description:
nftables is a subsystem of the Linux kernel providing filtering and classification of network
packets/datagrams/frames and is the successor to iptables.
nftables are installed as a dependency with firewalld.
Rationale:
Running firewalld and nftables concurrently may lead to conflict, therefore nftables should
be stopped and masked when using firewalld.
Audit:
Run the following commend to verify that nftables is not enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled nftables
(disabled|masked)
Run the following command to verify that nftables is not running:
# systemctl status nftables
Output should include:
Loaded: masked (/dev/null; bad)

Active: inactive (dead)
Remediation:
Run the following command to mask and stop nftables
systemctl --now mask nftables
firewalld is dependent on nftables. nftables should be stopped and disabled.
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3.4.2.4 Ensure firewalld default zone is set (Automated)
Description:
A firewall zone defines the trust level for a connection, interface or source address binding.
This is a one to many relation, which means that a connection, interface or source can only
be part of one zone, but a zone can be used for many network connections, interfaces and
sources.
The default zone is the zone that is used for everything that is not explicitely
bound/assigned to another zone.
That means that if there is no zone assigned to a connection, interface or source, only the
default zone is used. The default zone is not always listed as being used for an interface or
source as it will be used for it either way. This depends on the manager of the interfaces.
Connections handled by NetworkManager are listed as NetworkManager requests to add

the zone binding for the interface used by the connection. Also interfaces under control of
the network service are listed also because the service requests it.
Rationale:
Because the default zone is the zone that is used for everything that is not explicitly
bound/assigned to another zone, it is important for the default zone to set
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the default zone adheres to company policy:
# firewall-cmd --get-default-zone
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Remediation:
Run the following command to set the default zone:
# firewall-cmd --set-default-zone=<NAME_OF_ZONE>
Example:
# firewall-cmd --set-default-zone=public
References:
1. https://firewalld.org/documentation
2. https://firewalld.org/documentation/man-pages/firewalld.zone
A firewalld zone configuration file contains the information for a zone. These are the zone
description, services, ports, protocols, icmp-blocks, masquerade, forward-ports and rich
language rules in an XML file format. The file name has to be zone_name.xml where length
of zone_name is currently limited to 17 chars.
NetworkManager binds interfaces to zones automatically
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3.4.2.5 Ensure network interfaces are assigned to appropriate zone
(Manual)
Description:
firewall zones define the trust level of network connections or interfaces.
Rationale:
A network interface not assigned to the appropriate zone can allow unexpected or
undesired network traffic to be accepted on the interface
Impact:
the system.
Audit:
Run the following command, and verify that the interface(s) follow site policy for zone
assignment
# nmcli -t connection show | awk -F: '{if($4){print $4}}' | while read INT;
do firewall-cmd --get-active-zones | grep -B1 $INT; done
Remediation:
Run the following command to assign an interface to the approprate zone.
# firewall-cmd --zone=<Zone NAME> --change-interface=<INTERFACE NAME>
Example:
# firewall-cmd --zone=customezone --change-interface=eth0
Default Value:
If the zone is not set in the configuration file, the interfaces will be assigned to the default
zone defined in the firewalld configuration
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References:
1. https://firewalld.org/documentation/zone/connections-interfaces-and-
sources.html
The firewall in the Linux kernel is not able to handle network connections with the name
shown by NetworkManager, it can only handle the network interfaces used by the
connection. Because of this NetworkManager tells firewalld to assign the network interface
that is used for this connection to the zone defined in the configuration of that connection.
This assignment happens before the interface is used. The configuration of the connection
can either be the NetworkManager configuration or also an ifcfg for example. If the zone is
not set in the configuration file, the interfaces will be assigned to the default zone defined
in the firewalld configuration. If a connection has more than one interface, all of them will
be supplied to firewalld. Also changes in the names of interfaces will be handled by
NetworkManager and supplied to firewalld.
CIS Controls:
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3.4.2.6 Ensure firewalld drops unnecessary services and ports (Manual)
Description:
Services and ports can be accepted or explicitly rejected or dropped by a zone.
For every zone, you can set a default behavior that handles incoming traffic that is not
further specified. Such behavior is defined by setting the target of the zone. There are three
options - default, ACCEPT, REJECT, and DROP.
By setting the target to ACCEPT, you accept all incoming packets except those disabled by a
specific rule.
If you set the target to REJECT or DROP, you disable all incoming packets except those that
you have allowed in specific rules. When packets are rejected, the source machine is
informed about the rejection, while there is no information sent when the packets are
dropped.
Rationale:
To reduce the attack surface of a system, all services and ports should be blocked unless
required
Audit:
Run the following command and review output to ensure that listed services and ports
follow site policy.
# firewall-cmd --get-active-zones | awk '!/:/ {print $1}' | while read ZN; do

firewall-cmd --list-all --zone=$ZN; done
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Remediation:
Run the following command to remove an unnecessary service:
# firewall-cmd --remove-service=<service>
Example:
#firewall-cmd --remove-service=cockpit
Run the following command to remove an unnecessary port:
# firewall-cmd --remove-port=<port-number>/<port-type>
Example:
# firewall-cmd --remove-port=25/tcp
Run the following command to make new settings persistent:
# firewall-cmd --runtime-to-permanent
References:
1. firewalld.service(5)
2. https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-
us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/8/html/securing_networks/using-and-configuring-
firewalls_securing-networks
CIS Controls:
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3.4.3 Configure nftables
If firewalld or iptables are being used in your environment, please follow the guidance
packets/datagrams/frames and is the successor to iptables. The biggest change with the
successor nftables is its simplicity. With iptables, we have to configure every single rule and
use the syntax which can be compared with normal commands. With nftables, the simpler
syntax, much like BPF (Berkely Packet Filter) means shorter lines and less repetition.
Support for nftables should also be compiled into the kernel, together with the related
nftables modules. It is available in Linux kernels >= 3.13. Please ensure that your kernel
supports nftables before choosing this option.
This section broadly assumes starting with an empty nftables firewall ruleset (established
by flushing the rules with nft flush ruleset). Remediation steps included only affect the live
system, you will also need to configure your default firewall configuration to apply on boot.
Configuration of a live systems firewall directly over a remote connection will often
result in being locked out. It is advised to have a known good firewall configuration set to
run on boot and to configure an entire firewall structure in a script that is then run and
tested before saving to boot.
Note: Configuration of a live systems firewall directly over a remote connection will often
result in being locked out. It is advised to have a known good firewall configuration set to run
on boot and to configure an entire firewall structure in a script that is then run and tested
before saving to boot.
The following will implement the firewall rules of this section and open ICMP, IGMP, and port
22(ssh) from anywhere. Opening the ports for ICMP, IGMP, and port 22(ssh) needs to be
updated in accordance with local site policy. Allow port 22(ssh) needs to be updated to only
allow systems requiring ssh connectivity to connect, as per site policy.
Save the script bellow as /etc/nftables/nftables.rules
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#!/sbin/nft -f
# This nftables.rules config should be saved as /etc/nftables/nftables.rules
# flush nftables rulesset

flush ruleset
# Load nftables ruleset
# nftables config with inet table named filter
table inet filter {

# Base chain for input hook named input (Filters inbound network packets)
chain input {
type filter hook input priority 0; policy drop;
# Ensure loopback traffic is configured

iif "lo" accept
ip saddr 127.0.0.0/8 counter packets 0 bytes 0 drop
ip6 saddr ::1 counter packets 0 bytes 0 drop
# Ensure established connections are configured

ip protocol tcp ct state established accept
ip protocol udp ct state established accept
ip protocol icmp ct state established accept
# Accept port 22(SSH) traffic from anywhere

tcp dport ssh accept
# Accept ICMP and IGMP from anywhere

icmpv6 type { destination-unreachable, packet-too-big, time-exceeded,
parameter-problem, mld-listener-query, mld-listener-report, mld-listener-done, nd-
router-solicit, nd-router-advert, nd-neighbor-solicit, nd-neighbor-advert, ind-
neighbor-solicit, ind-neighbor-advert, mld2-listener-report } accept
icmp type { destination-unreachable, router-advertisement, router-
solicitation, time-exceeded, parameter-problem } accept
ip protocol igmp accept
}
# Base chain for hook forward named forward (Filters forwarded network
packets)
chain forward {
type filter hook forward priority 0; policy drop;
}
# Base chain for hook output named output (Filters outbount network packets)
chain output {
type filter hook output priority 0; policy drop;
# Ensure outbound and established connections are configured
ip protocol tcp ct state established,related,new accept
ip protocol udp ct state established,related,new accept
ip protocol icmp ct state established,related,new accept
}
}
Run the following command to load the file into nftables
# nft -f /etc/nftables/nftables.rules
All changes in the nftables subsections are temporary
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To make these changes permanent:
Run the following command to create the nftables.rules file
nft list ruleset > /etc/nftables/nftables.rules
Add the following line to /etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf
include "/etc/nftables/nftables.rules"
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3.4.3.1 Ensure iptables are flushed with nftables (Manual)
Description:
nftables is a replacement for iptables, ip6tables, ebtables and arptables
Rationale:
It is possible to mix iptables and nftables. However, this increases complexity and also the
chance to introduce errors. For simplicity flush out all iptables rules, and ensure it is not
loaded
Audit:
Run the following commands to ensure no iptables rules exist

For iptables:
# iptables -L
No rules should be returned

For ip6tables:
# ip6tables -L
No rules should be returned
Remediation:
Run the following commands to flush iptables:

For iptables:
# iptables -F
For ip6tables
# ip6tables -F
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

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3.4.3.2 Ensure an nftables table exists (Automated)
Description:
Tables hold chains. Each table only has one address family and only applies to packets of
this family. Tables can have one of five families.
Rationale:
nftables doesn't have any default tables. Without a table being build, nftables will not filter
network traffic.
Impact:
Adding rules to a running nftables can cause loss of connectivity to the system
Audit:
Run the following command to verify that a nftables table exists:
# nft list tables
Return should include a list of nftables:

example:
table inet filter
Remediation:
Run the following command to create a table in nftables
# nft create table inet <table name>
Example:
# nft create table inet filter
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3.4.3.3 Ensure nftables base chains exist (Automated)
Description:
Chains are containers for rules. They exist in two kinds, base chains and regular chains. A
base chain is an entry point for packets from the networking stack, a regular chain may be
used as jump target and is used for better rule organization.
Rationale:
If a base chain doesn't exist with a hook for input, forward, and delete, packets that would
flow through those chains will not be touched by nftables.
Impact:
if configuring nftables over ssh, creating a base chain with a policy of drop will cause loss
of connectivity.
Ensure that a rule allowing ssh has been added to the base chain prior to setting the base
chain's policy to drop
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify that base chains exist for INPUT, FORWARD, and
OUTPUT.
# nft list ruleset | grep 'hook input'
type filter hook input priority 0;
# nft list ruleset | grep 'hook forward'
type filter hook forward priority 0;
# nft list ruleset | grep 'hook output'
type filter hook output priority 0;
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Remediation:
Run the following command to create the base chains:
# nft create chain inet <table name> <base chain name> { type filter hook
<(input|forward|output)> priority 0 \; }
Example:
# nft create chain inet filter input { type filter hook input priority 0 \; }
# nft create chain inet filter forward { type filter hook forward priority 0
\; }
# nft create chain inet filter output { type filter hook output priority 0 \;
}
CIS Controls:
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3.4.3.4 Ensure nftables loopback traffic is configured (Automated)
Description:
Configure the loopback interface to accept traffic. Configure all other interfaces to deny
traffic to the loopback network
Rationale:
Loopback traffic is generated between processes on a machine and is typically critical to

operation of the system. The loopback interface is the only place that loopback network
traffic should be seen, all other interfaces should ignore traffic on this network as an anti-
spoofing measure.
Audit:
Run the following commands to verify that the loopback interface is configured:
# nft list ruleset | awk '/hook input/,/}/' | grep 'iif "lo" accept'
iif "lo" accept
# nft list ruleset | awk '/hook input/,/}/' | grep 'ip saddr'
IF IPv6 is enabled, run the following command to verify that the IPv6 loopback interface is
configured:
# nft list ruleset | awk '/hook input/,/}/' | grep 'ip6 saddr'
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Remediation:
Run the following commands to implement the loopback rules:
# nft add rule inet filter input iif lo accept

# nft create rule inet filter input ip saddr 127.0.0.0/8 counter drop
IF IPv6 is enabled:
Run the following command to implement the IPv6 loopback rules:
# nft add rule inet filter input ip6 saddr ::1 counter drop
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
implementations include a virtual firewall, operating system firewall, or a third-party
● ● ●
firewall agent.

v7
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allowed.
19.4 Devise Organization-wide Standards for Reporting

Incidents
v7 Devise organization-wide standards for the time required for system ● ●
administrators and other workforce members to report anomalous events to the
incident handling team, the mechanisms for such reporting, and the kind of
information that should be included in the incident notification.
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3.4.3.5 Ensure nftables outbound and established connections are
configured (Manual)
Description:
Configure the firewall rules for new outbound, and established connections
Rationale:
If rules are not in place for new outbound, and established connections all packets will be
dropped by the default policy preventing network usage.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify all rules for established incoming connections
match site policy: site policy:
# nft list ruleset | awk '/hook input/,/}/' | grep -E 'ip protocol

(tcp|udp|icmp) ct state'
Output should be similar to:

Run the folllowing command and verify all rules for new and established outbound
connections match site policy
# nft list ruleset | awk '/hook output/,/}/' | grep -E 'ip protocol

(tcp|udp|icmp) ct state'

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Remediation:
Configure nftables in accordance with site policy. The following commands will implement
a policy to allow all outbound connections and all established connections:
# nft add rule inet filter input ip protocol tcp ct state established accept
# nft add rule inet filter input ip protocol udp ct state established accept
# nft add rule inet filter input ip protocol icmp ct state established accept
# nft add rule inet filter output ip protocol tcp ct state

new,related,established accept
# nft add rule inet filter output ip protocol udp ct state

# nft add rule inet filter output ip protocol icmp ct state

CIS Controls:
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3.4.3.6 Ensure nftables default deny firewall policy (Automated)
Description:
Base chain policy is the default verdict that will be applied to packets reaching the end of
the chain.
Rationale:
There are two policies: accept (Default) and drop. If the policy is set to accept, the firewall
will accept any packet that is not configured to be denied and the packet will continue
transversing the network stack.
It is easier to white list acceptable usage than to black list unacceptable usage.
Impact:
if configuring nftables over ssh, creating a base chain with a policy of drop will cause loss of
connectivity.
Ensure that a rule allowing ssh has been added to the base chain prior to setting the base
chain's policy to drop
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify that base chains contain a policy of DROP.
# nft list ruleset | grep 'hook input'
# nft list ruleset | grep 'hook forward'
# nft list ruleset | grep 'hook output'
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Remediation:
Run the following command for the base chains with the input, forward, and output hooks
to implement a default DROP policy:
# nft chain <table family> <table name> <chain name> { policy drop \; }
Example:
# nft chain inet filter input { policy drop \; }

# nft chain inet filter forward { policy drop \; }
# nft chain inet filter output { policy drop \; }
Default Value:
accept
References:
1. Manual Page nft
the system.
CIS Controls:
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3.4.3.7 Ensure nftables service is enabled (Automated)
Description:
The nftables service allows for the loading of nftables rulesets during boot, or starting of
the nftables service
Rationale:
The nftables service restores the nftables rules from the rules files referenced in the
/etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf file durring boot or the starting of the nftables service
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the nftables service is enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled nftables
enabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable the nftables service:
# systemctl --now enable nftables
CIS Controls:
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3.4.3.8 Ensure nftables rules are permanent (Automated)
Description:
packets/datagrams/frames.
The nftables service reads the /etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf file for a nftables file or
files to include in the nftables ruleset.
A nftables ruleset containing the input, forward, and output base chains allow network
traffic to be filtered.
Rationale:
Changes made to nftables ruleset only affect the live system, you will also need to configure
the nftables ruleset to apply on boot.
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Audit:
Run the following commands to verify that input, forward, and output base chains are
configured to be applied to a nftables ruleset on boot and follow local site policy:
Run the following command to verify the input base chain:
# [[ -n $(grep -E "^\s*include" /etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf) ]] && awk

'/hook input/,/}/' $(awk '$1 ~ /^\s*include/ { gsub("\"","",$2);print $2 }'
/etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf)

iif "lo" accept
# Ensure established connections are configured

# Accept port 22(SSH) traffic from anywhere

tcp dport ssh accept
# Accept ICMP and IGMP from anywhere

icmpv6 type { destination-unreachable, packet-too-big, time-exceeded,
parameter-problem, mld-listener-query, mld-listener-report, mld-listener-
done, nd-router-solicit, nd-router-advert, nd-neighbor-solicit, nd-neighbor-
advert, ind-neighbor-solicit, ind-neighbor-advert, mld2-listener-report }
accept
Run the following command to verify the forward base chain:

'/hook forward/,/}/' $(awk '$1 ~ /^\s*include/ { gsub("\"","",$2);print $2 }'
# Base chain for hook forward named forward (Filters forwarded network
packets)
chain forward {
}
Run the following command to verify the output base chain:
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'/hook output/,/}/' $(awk '$1 ~ /^\s*include/ { gsub("\"","",$2);print $2 }'
# Base chain for hook output named output (Filters outbound network packets)
chain output {
}
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf file and un-comment or add a line with include
<Absolute path to nftables rules file> for each nftables file you want included in the
nftables ruleset on boot
Example:
# vi /etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf
Add the line:
include "/etc/nftables/nftables.rules"
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

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v7
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3.4.4 Configure iptables
If firewalld or nftables are being used in your environment, please follow the guidance
IPtables is an application that allows a system administrator to configure the IPv4 and IPv6
tables, chains and rules provided by the Linux kernel firewall. While several methods of
configuration exist this section is intended only to ensure the resulting IPtables rules are in
place, not how they are configured. If IPv6 is in use in your environment, similar settings
should be applied to the IP6tables as well.
Note: Configuration of a live systems firewall directly over a remote connection will often
result in being locked out. It is advised to have a known good firewall configuration set to run
on boot and to configure an entire firewall structure in a script that is then run and tested
before saving to boot.
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3.4.4.1 Configure IPv4 iptables
IPTables is used to set up, maintain, and inspect the tables of IP packet filter rules in the
Linux kernel. Several different tables may be defined. Each table contains a number of
built-in chains and may also contain user-defined chains.
Each chain is a list of rules which can match a set of packets. Each rule specifies what to do
with a packet that matches. This is called a 'target', which may be a jump to a user-defined
chain in the same table.
Note:
 This section broadly assumes starting with an empty IPTables firewall ruleset
(established by flushing the rules with iptables -F).
 Configuration of a live systems firewall directly over a remote connection will often
result in being locked out.
 It is advised to have a known good firewall configuration set to run on boot and to
configure an entire firewall structure in a script that is then run and tested before
saving to boot.
The following script will implement the firewall rules of this section and open port 22(ssh)
from anywhere. This needs to be updated to only allow systems requiring ssh connectivity to
connect as per site policy.
#!/bin/bash
# Flush IPtables rules

iptables -F
# Ensure default deny firewall policy

iptables -P INPUT DROP
iptables -P OUTPUT DROP
iptables -P FORWARD DROP

iptables -A INPUT -i lo -j ACCEPT
iptables -A OUTPUT -o lo -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -s 127.0.0.0/8 -j DROP

iptables -A OUTPUT -p tcp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
iptables -A OUTPUT -p udp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
iptables -A OUTPUT -p icmp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p udp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p icmp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# Open inbound ssh(tcp port 22) connections

iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 22 -m state --state NEW -j ACCEPT
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3.4.4.1.1 Ensure iptables default deny firewall policy (Automated)
Description:
A default deny all policy on connections ensures that any unconfigured network usage will
be rejected.
Rationale:
With a default accept policy the firewall will accept any packet that is not configured to be
denied. It is easier to white list acceptable usage than to black list unacceptable usage.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the policy for the INPUT , OUTPUT , and FORWARD
chains is DROP or REJECT :
# iptables -L
Chain INPUT (policy DROP)

Chain FORWARD (policy DROP)
Chain OUTPUT (policy DROP)
Remediation:
Run the following commands to implement a default DROP policy:
# iptables -P INPUT DROP

# iptables -P OUTPUT DROP
# iptables -P FORWARD DROP
the system.
Remediation will only affect the active system firewall, be sure to configure the default
policy in your firewall management to apply on boot as well.
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CIS Controls:
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Version

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3.4.4.1.2 Ensure iptables loopback traffic is configured (Automated)
Description:
traffic to the loopback network (127.0.0.0/8).
Rationale:
Loopback traffic is generated between processes on machine and is typically critical to

(127.0.0.0/8) traffic should be seen, all other interfaces should ignore traffic on this
network as an anti-spoofing measure.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify output includes the listed rules in order (packet
and byte counts may differ):
# iptables -L INPUT -v -n
Chain INPUT (policy DROP 0 packets, 0 bytes)
pkts bytes target prot opt in out source
destination
0 0 ACCEPT all -- lo * 0.0.0.0/0 0.0.0.0/0
0 0 DROP all -- * * 127.0.0.0/8 0.0.0.0/0
# iptables -L OUTPUT -v -n
Chain OUTPUT (policy DROP 0 packets, 0 bytes)
destination
0 0 ACCEPT all -- * lo 0.0.0.0/0 0.0.0.0/0
Remediation:
# iptables -A INPUT -i lo -j ACCEPT

# iptables -A OUTPUT -o lo -j ACCEPT
# iptables -A INPUT -s 127.0.0.0/8 -j DROP
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the system.
CIS Controls:
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3.4.4.1.3 Ensure iptables outbound and established connections are
configured (Manual)
Description:
Configure the firewall rules for new outbound, and established connections.
Rationale:
Audit:
Run the following command and verify all rules for new outbound, and established
connections match site policy:
# iptables -L -v -n
Remediation:
Configure iptables in accordance with site policy. The following commands will implement
# iptables -A OUTPUT -p tcp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT

# iptables -A OUTPUT -p udp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# iptables -A OUTPUT -p icmp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# iptables -A INPUT -p tcp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# iptables -A INPUT -p udp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# iptables -A INPUT -p icmp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
the system.
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3.4.4.1.4 Ensure iptables firewall rules exist for all open ports
(Automated)
Description:
Any ports that have been opened on non-loopback addresses need firewall rules to govern
traffic.
Rationale:
Without a firewall rule configured for open ports default firewall policy will drop all
packets to these ports.
Audit:
Run the following command to determine open ports:
# ss -4tuln
Netid State Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address:Port Peer

Address:Port
udp UNCONN 0 0 *:68
*:*
udp UNCONN 0 0 *:123
*:*
tcp LISTEN 0 128 *:22
*:*
Run the following command to determine firewall rules:
# iptables -L INPUT -v -n
destination
0 0 ACCEPT all -- lo * 0.0.0.0/0 0.0.0.0/0
0 0 DROP all -- * * 127.0.0.0/8 0.0.0.0/0
0 0 ACCEPT tcp -- * * 0.0.0.0/0 0.0.0.0/0
tcp dpt:22 state NEW
Verify all open ports listening on non-localhost addresses have at least one firewall rule.
The last line identified by the "tcp dpt:22 state NEW" identifies it as a firewall rule for new
connections on tcp port 22.
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Remediation:
For each port identified in the audit which does not have a firewall rule establish a proper
rule for accepting inbound connections:
# iptables -A INPUT -p <protocol> --dport <port> -m state --state NEW -j

ACCEPT
the system.
The remediation command opens up the port to traffic from all sources. Consult iptables
documentation and set any restrictions in compliance with site policy.
CIS Controls:
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3.4.4.1.5 Ensure iptables is enabled and active (Automated)
Description:
iptables.service is a utility for configuring and maintaining iptables.
Rationale:
iptables.service will load the iptables rules saved in the file /etc/sysconfig/iptables
at boot, otherwise the iptables rules will be cleared during a re-boot of the system.
Audit:
Run the following commands to verify iptables is enabled:
enabled
Run the following command to verify iptables.service is active:
# systemctl status iptables | grep " Active: active "
Active: active (exited) since <day date and time>
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable and start iptables:
# systemctl --now enable iptables
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3.4.4.1.6 Ensure iptables is enabled and active (Automated)
Description:
iptables.service is a utility for configuring and maintaining iptables.
Rationale:
iptables.service will load the iptables rules saved in the file /etc/sysconfig/iptables
at boot, otherwise the iptables rules will be cleared during a re-boot of the system.
Audit:
Run the following commands to verify iptables is enabled:
enabled
Run the following command to verify iptables.service is active:
# systemctl status iptables | grep " Active: active "
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable and start iptables:
# systemctl --now enable iptables
CIS Controls:
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3.4.4.2 Configure IPv6 ip6tables
If IPv6 is not enabled on the system, this section can be skipped.
Ip6tables is used to set up, maintain, and inspect the tables of IPv6 packet filter rules in the
Linux kernel. Several different tables may be defined. Each table contains a number of
built-in chains and may also contain user-defined chains. Each chain is a list of rules which
can match a set of packets. Each rule specifies what to do with a packet that matches. This
is called a `target', which may be a jump to a user-defined chain in the same table.
Note:
 This section broadly assumes starting with an empty ip6tables firewall ruleset
(established by flushing the rules with ip6tables -F).
 Configuration of a live systems firewall directly over a remote connection will often
result in being locked out. It is advised to have a known good firewall configuration
set to run on boot and to configure an entire firewall structure in a script that is then
run and tested before saving to boot.
The following script will implement the firewall rules of this section and open port 22(ssh)
from anywhere. This needs to be updated to only allow systems requiring ssh connectivity to
connect as per site policy.
#!/bin/bash
# Flush ip6tables rules

ip6tables -F
# Ensure default deny firewall policy

ip6tables -P INPUT DROP
ip6tables -P OUTPUT DROP
ip6tables -P FORWARD DROP

ip6tables -A INPUT -i lo -j ACCEPT
ip6tables -A OUTPUT -o lo -j ACCEPT
ip6tables -A INPUT -s ::1 -j DROP

ip6tables -A OUTPUT -p tcp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
ip6tables -A OUTPUT -p udp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
ip6tables -A OUTPUT -p icmp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
ip6tables -A INPUT -p tcp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
ip6tables -A INPUT -p udp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
ip6tables -A INPUT -p icmp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# Open inbound ssh(tcp port 22) connections

ip6tables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 22 -m state --state NEW -j ACCEPT
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3.4.4.2.1 Ensure ip6tables default deny firewall policy (Automated)
Description:
A default deny all policy on connections ensures that any unconfigured network usage will
be rejected.
Rationale:
With a default accept policy the firewall will accept any packet that is not configured to be
denied. It is easier to white list acceptable usage than to black list unacceptable usage.
Audit:
If IPv6 is enabled on the system

Run the following command and verify that the policy for the INPUT, OUTPUT, and
FORWARD chains is DROP or REJECT:
# ip6tables -L
Chain INPUT (policy DROP)
Chain FORWARD (policy DROP)
Chain OUTPUT (policy DROP)
Remediation:
Run the following commands to implement a default DROP policy:
# ip6tables -P INPUT DROP

# ip6tables -P OUTPUT DROP
# ip6tables -P FORWARD DROP
the system.
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3.4.4.2.2 Ensure ip6tables loopback traffic is configured (Automated)
Description:
traffic to the loopback network (::1).
Rationale:
Loopback traffic is generated between processes on machine and is typically critical to

(::1) traffic should be seen, all other interfaces should ignore traffic on this network as an
anti-spoofing measure.
Audit:

Run the following commands and verify output includes the listed rules in order (packet
and byte counts may differ):
# ip6tables -L INPUT -v -n
destination
0 0 ACCEPT all lo * ::/0 ::/0
0 0 DROP all * * ::1 ::/0
# ip6tables -L OUTPUT -v -n
Chain OUTPUT (policy DROP 0 packets, 0 bytes)
destination
0 0 ACCEPT all * lo ::/0 ::/0
Remediation:
# ip6tables -A INPUT -i lo -j ACCEPT

# ip6tables -A OUTPUT -o lo -j ACCEPT
# ip6tables -A INPUT -s ::1 -j DROP
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the system.
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3.4.4.2.3 Ensure ip6tables outbound and established connections are
configured (Manual)
Description:
Configure the firewall rules for new outbound, and established IPv6 connections.
Rationale:
Audit:

Run the following command and verify all rules for new outbound, and established
connections match site policy:
# ip6tables -L -v -n
Remediation:
Configure iptables in accordance with site policy. The following commands will implement
# ip6tables -A OUTPUT -p tcp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT

# ip6tables -A OUTPUT -p udp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# ip6tables -A OUTPUT -p icmp -m state --state NEW,ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# ip6tables -A INPUT -p tcp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# ip6tables -A INPUT -p udp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
# ip6tables -A INPUT -p icmp -m state --state ESTABLISHED -j ACCEPT
the system.
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3.4.4.2.4 Ensure ip6tables firewall rules exist for all open ports
(Automated)
Description:
Any ports that have been opened on non-loopback addresses need firewall rules to govern
traffic.
Rationale:
Without a firewall rule configured for open ports default firewall policy will drop all
packets to these ports.
Audit:

run the following command to determine open ports:
# ss -6tuln
Netid State Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address:Port Peer

Address:Port
udp UNCONN 0 0 ::1:123
:::*
udp UNCONN 0 0 :::123
:::*
tcp LISTEN 0 128 :::22
:::*
tcp LISTEN 0 20 ::1:25
:::*
Run the following command to determine firewall rules:
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# ip6tables -L INPUT -v -n

destination
0 0 ACCEPT all lo * ::/0 ::/0
0 0 DROP all * * ::1 ::/0
0 0 ACCEPT tcp * * ::/0 ::/0
tcp dpt:22 state NEW
Verify all open ports listening on non-localhost addresses have at least one firewall rule.
The last line identified by the "tcp dpt:22 state NEW" identifies it as a firewall rule for new
connections on tcp port 22.
Remediation:
For each port identified in the audit which does not have a firewall rule establish a proper
rule for accepting inbound connections:
# ip6tables -A INPUT -p <protocol> --dport <port> -m state --state NEW -j

ACCEPT
the system.
The remediation command opens up the port to traffic from all sources. Consult iptables
documentation and set any restrictions in compliance with site policy.
CIS Controls:
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v8
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3.4.4.2.5 Ensure ip6tables is enabled and active (Automated)
Description:
ip6tables.service is a utility for configuring and maintaining ip6tables.
Rationale:
ip6tables.service will load the iptables rules saved in the file

/etc/sysconfig/ip6tables at boot, otherwise the ip6tables rules will be cleared during a
re-boot of the system.
Audit:
If IPv6 is enabled on the system:

Run the following commands to verify ip6tables is enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled ip6tables
enabled
Run the following command to verify ip6tables.service is active and running or exited
# systemctl status ip6tables | grep -E " Active: active $(running|exited)$

"
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable and start ip6tables:
# systemctl --now start ip6tables
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3.5 Ensure wireless interfaces are disabled (Automated)
Description:
Wireless networking is used when wired networks are unavailable. CentOS Linux contains
a wireless tool kit to allow system administrators to configure and use wireless networks.
Rationale:
If wireless is not to be used, wireless devices can be disabled to reduce the potential attack
surface.
Impact:
Many if not all laptop workstations and some desktop workstations will connect via
wireless requiring these interfaces be enabled.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify no wireless interfaces are active on the system:
# nmcli radio all
Output should look like:
WIFI-HW WIFI WWAN-HW WWAN

enabled disabled enabled disabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to disable any wireless interfaces:
# nmcli radio all off
Disable any wireless interfaces in your network configuration.
References:
1. nmcli(1) - Linux man page
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Controls
Version

15.4 Disable Wireless Access on Devices if Not Required

v7 Disable wireless access on devices that do not have a business purpose for ●
wireless access.
15.5 Limit Wireless Access on Client Devices

Configure wireless access on client machines that do have an essential wireless
v7
business purpose, to allow access only to authorized wireless networks and to
●
restrict access to other wireless networks.
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3.6 Disable IPv6 (Manual)
Description:
Although IPv6 has many advantages over IPv4, not all organizations have IPv6 or dual
stack configurations implemented.
Rationale:
If IPv6 or dual stack is not to be used, it is recommended that IPv6 be disabled to reduce
the attack surface of the system.
Audit:
Run the following script to verify if IPv6 is disabled:
#!/bin/bash
output=""
[ -f "$efidir"/grubenv ] && grubfile="$efidir/grubenv" ||

grubfile="$gbdir/grubenv"
! grep "^\s*kernelopts=" "$grubfile" | grep -vq ipv6.disable=1 &&

output="ipv6 disabled in grub config"
if grep -Eqs "^\s*net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.disable_ipv6\s*=\s*1\b"

/run/sysctl.d/*.conf && grep -Eqs
"^\s*net\.ipv6\.conf\.default\.disable_ipv6\s*=\s*1\b" /etc/sysctl.conf
/etc/sysctl.d/*.conf /usr/lib/sysctl.d/*.conf /run/sysctl.d/*.conf && sysctl
net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6 | grep -Eq
"^\s*net\.ipv6\.conf\.all\.disable_ipv6\s*=\s*1\b" && sysctl
net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6 | grep -Eq
"^\s*net\.ipv6\.conf\.default\.disable_ipv6\s*=\s*1\b"; then
[ -n "$output" ] && output="$output, and in sysctl config" || output="ipv6
disabled in sysctl config"
fi
[ -n "$output" ] && echo -e "\n\n$output\n" || echo -e "\n\nIPv6 is enabled
on the system\n"
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Remediation:
Use one of the two following methods to disable IPv6 on the system:
To disable IPv6 through the GRUB2 config:
Edit /etc/default/grub and add ipv6.disable=1 to the GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX parameters:
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="ipv6.disable=1"
# grub2-mkconfig –o /boot/grub2/grub.cfg
OR
To disable IPv6 through sysctl settings:
net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6 = 1
net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6 = 1
# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6=1
# sysctl -w net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6=1
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4 Logging and Auditing
The items in this section describe how to configure logging, log monitoring, and auditing,
using tools included in most distributions.
It is recommended that rsyslog be used for logging (with logwatch providing

summarization) and auditd be used for auditing (with aureport providing
summarization) to automatically monitor logs for intrusion attempts and other suspicious
system behavior.
In addition to the local log files created by the steps in this section, it is also recommended
that sites collect copies of their system logs on a secure, centralized log server via an
encrypted connection. Not only does centralized logging help sites correlate events that
may be occurring on multiple systems, but having a second copy of the system log
information may be critical after a system compromise where the attacker has modified the
local log files on the affected system(s). If a log correlation system is deployed, configure it
to process the logs described in this section.
Because it is often necessary to correlate log information from many different systems
(particularly after a security incident) it is recommended that the time be synchronized
among systems and devices connected to the local network. The standard Internet protocol
for time synchronization is the Network Time Protocol (NTP), which is supported by most
network-ready devices. Reference <http://chrony.tuxfamily.org/> manual page for more
information on configuring chrony.
It is important that all logs described in this section be monitored on a regular basis and
correlated to determine trends. A seemingly innocuous entry in one log could be more
significant when compared to an entry in another log.
Note on log file permissions: There really isn't a "one size fits all" solution to the
permissions on log files. Many sites utilize group permissions so that administrators who
are in a defined security group, such as "wheel" do not have to elevate privileges to root in
order to read log files. Also, if a third party log aggregation tool is used, it may need to have
group permissions to read the log files, which is preferable to having it run setuid to root.
Therefore, there are two remediation and audit steps for log file permissions. One is for
systems that do not have a secured group method implemented that only permits root to
read the log files (root:root 600). The other is for sites that do have such a setup and are
designated as root:securegrp 640 where securegrp is the defined security group (in
some cases wheel).
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4.1 Configure System Accounting (auditd)
System auditing, through auditd, allows system administrators to monitor their systems
such that they can detect unauthorized access or modification of data. By default, auditd
will audit SELinux AVC denials, system logins, account modifications, and authentication
events. Events will be logged to /var/log/audit/audit.log. The recording of these events
will use a modest amount of disk space on a system. If significantly more events are
captured, additional on system or off system storage may need to be allocated.
The recommendations in this section implement an audit policy that produces large
quantities of logged data. In some environments it can be challenging to store or process
these logs and as such they are marked as Level 2 for both Servers and Workstations.
Note: For 64 bit systems that have arch as a rule parameter, you will need two rules: one
for 64 bit and one for 32 bit.
Note: Systems may have been customized to change the default UID_MIN. To confirm the
UID_MIN for your system, run the following command:
awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}' /etc/login.defs
If your systems' UID_MIN is not 1000, replace audit>=1000 with audit>=<UID_MIN for your
system> in the Audit and Remediation procedures.
Note: Once all configuration changes have been made to

/etc/audit/rules.d/audit.rules, the auditd configuration must be reloaded with the
following command:
# service auditd reload
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4.1.1 Ensure auditing is enabled
The capturing of system events provides system administrators with information to allow
them to determine if unauthorized access to their system is occurring.
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4.1.1.1 Ensure auditd is installed (Automated)
Description:
auditd is the userspace component to the Linux Auditing System. It's responsible for
writing audit records to the disk
Rationale:
Audit:
Run the following command and verify auditd is installed:
# rpm -q audit audit-libs
Remediation:
Run the following command to Install auditd
# dnf install audit audit-libs
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8.2 Collect Audit Logs

v8 Collect audit logs. Ensure that logging, per the enterprise’s audit log management ● ● ●
process, has been enabled across enterprise assets.

v7 Ensure that local logging has been enabled on all systems and networking ● ● ●
devices.

v7
● ●
elements.
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4.1.1.2 Ensure auditd service is enabled (Automated)
Description:
Turn on the auditd daemon to record system events.
Rationale:
Audit:
Run the following command to verify auditd is enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled auditd
enabled
Verify result is "enabled".
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable auditd:
# systemctl --now enable auditd
Additional methods of enabling a service exist. Consult your distribution documentation for
appropriate methods.
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devices.

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4.1.1.3 Ensure auditing for processes that start prior to auditd is
enabled (Automated)
Description:
Configure grub2 so that processes that are capable of being audited can be audited even if
they start up prior to auditd startup.
Rationale:
Audit events need to be captured on processes that start up prior to auditd , so that
potential malicious activity cannot go undetected.
Audit:
# grep -E 'kernelopts=(\S+\s+)*audit=1\b' /boot/grub2/grubenv
Output will include audit=1
Remediation:
Edit /etc/default/grub and add audit=1 to GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX:
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="audit=1"
This recommendation is designed around the grub2 bootloader, if another bootloader is in

use in your environment enact equivalent settings.
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4.1.1.4 Ensure audit_backlog_limit is sufficient (Automated)
Description:
The backlog limit has a default setting of 64
Rationale:
during boot if audit=1, then the backlog will hold 64 records. If more that 64 records are
created during boot, auditd records will be lost and potential malicious activity could go
undetected.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify the audit_backlog_limit= parameter is set to an
appropriate size for your organization
# grep -E 'kernelopts=(\S+\s+)*audit_backlog_limit=\S+\b' /boot/grub2/grubenv
Validate that the line(s) returned contain a value for audit_backlog_limit= and the value
is sufficient for your organization.
Recommended that this value be 8192 or larger.
Remediation:
Edit /etc/default/grub and add audit_backlog_limit=<BACKLOG SIZE> to

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX:
Example:
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="audit_backlog_limit=8192"
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4.1.2 Configure Data Retention
When auditing, it is important to carefully configure the storage requirements for audit
logs. By default, auditd will max out the log files at 5MB and retain only 4 copies of them.
Older versions will be deleted. It is possible on a system that the 20 MBs of audit logs may
fill up the system causing loss of audit data. While the recommendations here provide
guidance, check your site policy for audit storage requirements.
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4.1.2.1 Ensure audit log storage size is configured (Automated)
Description:
Configure the maximum size of the audit log file. Once the log reaches the maximum size, it
will be rotated and a new log file will be started.
Rationale:
It is important that an appropriate size is determined for log files so that they do not impact
the system and audit data is not lost.
Audit:
Run the following command and ensure output is in compliance with site policy:
# grep max_log_file /etc/audit/auditd.conf
max_log_file = <MB>
Remediation:
Set the following parameter in /etc/audit/auditd.conf in accordance with site policy:
max_log_file = <MB>
The max_log_file parameter is measured in megabytes.
Other methods of log rotation may be appropriate based on site policy. One example is
time-based rotation strategies which don't have native support in auditd configurations.
Manual audit of custom configurations should be evaluated for effectiveness and
completeness.
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4.1.2.2 Ensure audit logs are not automatically deleted (Automated)
Description:
The max_log_file_action setting determines how to handle the audit log file reaching the
max file size. A value of keep_logs will rotate the logs but never delete old logs.
Rationale:
In high security contexts, the benefits of maintaining a long audit history exceed the cost of
storing the audit history.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify output matches:
# grep max_log_file_action /etc/audit/auditd.conf
max_log_file_action = keep_logs
Remediation:
Set the following parameter in /etc/audit/auditd.conf:
max_log_file_action = keep_logs
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generated.
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4.1.2.3 Ensure system is disabled when audit logs are full (Automated)
Description:
The auditd daemon can be configured to halt the system when the audit logs are full.
Rationale:
In high security contexts, the risk of detecting unauthorized access or nonrepudiation

exceeds the benefit of the system's availability.
Audit:
# grep space_left_action /etc/audit/auditd.conf
space_left_action = email
# grep action_mail_acct /etc/audit/auditd.conf
action_mail_acct = root
# grep admin_space_left_action /etc/audit/auditd.conf
admin_space_left_action = halt
Remediation:
Set the following parameters in /etc/audit/auditd.conf:
space_left_action = email
action_mail_acct = root
admin_space_left_action = halt
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v8 Collect audit logs. Ensure that logging, per the enterprise’s audit log ● ● ●
management process, has been enabled across enterprise assets.

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4.1.3 Ensure changes to system administration scope (sudoers) is
collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor scope changes for system administrators. If the system has been properly
configured to force system administrators to log in as themselves first and then use the
sudo command to execute privileged commands, it is possible to monitor changes in scope.
The file /etc/sudoers will be written to when the file or its attributes have changed. The
audit records will be tagged with the identifier "scope."
Rationale:
Changes in the /etc/sudoers file can indicate that an unauthorized change has been made
to scope of system administrator activity.
Audit:
Run the following command to check the auditd .rules files:
# grep scope /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
Verify output of matches:
-w /etc/sudoers -p wa -k scope
-w /etc/sudoers.d/ -p wa -k scope
Run the following command to check loaded auditd rules:
# auditctl -l | grep scope
Verify output matches:
-w /etc/sudoers.d -p wa -k scope
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Remediation:
Edit or create a file in the /etc/audit/rules.d/ directory ending in .rules

_Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-scope.rules
Add the following lines:
-w /etc/sudoers.d/ -p wa -k scope
Reloading the auditd config to set active settings may require a system reboot.
CIS Controls:
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v8
● ●
4.8 Log and Alert on Changes to Administrative Group

v7 Membership ● ●
Configure systems to issue a log entry and alert when an account is added to or
removed from any group assigned administrative privileges.
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4.1.4 Ensure login and logout events are collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor login and logout events. The parameters below track changes to files associated
with login/logout events.
 The file /var/log/lastlog maintain records of the last time a user successfully
logged in.
 The /var/run/faillock/ directory maintains records of login failures via the
pam_faillock module.
Rationale:
Monitoring login/logout events could provide a system administrator with information

associated with brute force attacks against user logins.
Audit:
# grep logins /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

# auditctl -l | grep logins
Verify output of both includes:
-w /var/log/lastlog -p wa -k logins
-w /var/run/faillock/ -p wa -k logins
Remediation:

Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-logins.rules
-w /var/log/lastlog -p wa -k logins
-w /var/run/faillock/ -p wa -k logins
314 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●
4.9 Log and Alert on Unsuccessful Administrative Account

v7 Login ● ●
Configure systems to issue a log entry and alert on unsuccessful logins to an
administrative account.
16.13 Alert on Account Login Behavior Deviation

v7 Alert when users deviate from normal login behavior, such as time-of-day, ●
workstation location and duration.
315 | P a g e
4.1.5 Ensure session initiation information is collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor session initiation events. The parameters in this section track changes to the files
associated with session events. The file /var/run/utmp tracks all currently logged in users.
All audit records will be tagged with the identifier "session." The /var/log/wtmp file tracks
logins, logouts, shutdown, and reboot events. The file /var/log/btmp keeps track of failed
login attempts and can be read by entering the command /usr/bin/last -f
/var/log/btmp . All audit records will be tagged with the identifier "logins."
Rationale:
Monitoring these files for changes could alert a system administrator to logins occurring at
unusual hours, which could indicate intruder activity (i.e. a user logging in at a time when
they do not normally log in).
Audit:
# grep -E '(session|logins)' /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
Verify output includes:
-w /var/run/utmp -p wa -k session
-w /var/log/wtmp -p wa -k logins
-w /var/log/btmp -p wa -k logins
# auditctl -l | grep -E '(session|logins)'
Verify output includes:
316 | P a g e
Remediation:

Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-session.rules
The last command can be used to read /var/log/wtmp (last with no parameters) and
/var/run/utmp (last -f /var/run/utmp)
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

v7 Login ● ●

317 | P a g e
4.1.6 Ensure events that modify date and time information are collected
(Automated)
Description:
Capture events where the system date and/or time has been modified. The parameters in
this section are set to determine if the adjtimex (tune kernel clock), settimeofday (Set
time, using timeval and timezone structures) stime (using seconds since 1/1/1970) or
clock_settime (allows for the setting of several internal clocks and timers) system calls
have been executed and always write an audit record to the /var/log/audit.log file upon
exit, tagging the records with the identifier "time-change"
Rationale:
Unexpected changes in system date and/or time could be a sign of malicious activity on the
system.
Audit:
On a 32 bit system run the following commands:
# grep time-change /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
# auditctl -l | grep time-change
Verify output of both matches:
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S adjtimex -S settimeofday -S stime -k time-
change
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S clock_settime -k time-change
-w /etc/localtime -p wa -k time-change
# grep time-change /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
# auditctl -l | grep time-change
-a always,exit -F arch=b64 -S adjtimex -S settimeofday -k time-change
change
318 | P a g e
Remediation:
For 32 bit systems Edit or create a file in the /etc/audit/rules.d/ directory ending in
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-time_change.rules

change
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-time_change.rules
-a always,exit -F arch=b64 -S adjtimex -S settimeofday -k time-change

change
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●
5.5 Implement Automated Configuration Monitoring Systems

Utilize a Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP) compliant configuration
v7
monitoring system to verify all security configuration elements, catalog approved
● ●
exceptions, and alert when unauthorized changes occur.
319 | P a g e
4.1.7 Ensure events that modify the system's Mandatory Access
Controls are collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor SELinux/AppArmor mandatory access controls. The parameters below monitor

any write access (potential additional, deletion or modification of files in the directory) or
attribute changes to the /etc/selinux or /etc/apparmor and /etc/apparmor.d directories.
Rationale:
Changes to files in these directories could indicate that an unauthorized user is attempting
to modify access controls and change security contexts, leading to a compromise of the
system.
Audit:
# grep MAC-policy /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

# auditctl -l | grep MAC-policy
-w /etc/selinux/ -p wa -k MAC-policy
-w /usr/share/selinux/ -p wa -k MAC-policy
Remediation:

Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-MAC_policy.rules
-w /etc/selinux/ -p wa -k MAC-policy
-w /usr/share/selinux/ -p wa -k MAC-policy
320 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

v7
● ●
321 | P a g e
4.1.8 Ensure events that modify the system's network environment are
Description:
Record changes to network environment files or system calls. The below parameters
monitor the sethostname (set the systems host name) or setdomainname (set the systems
domainname) system calls, and write an audit event on system call exit. The other
parameters monitor the /etc/issue and /etc/issue.net files (messages displayed pre-
login), /etc/hosts (file containing host names and associated IP addresses) and
/etc/sysconfig/network (directory containing network interface scripts and
configurations) files.
Rationale:
Monitoring sethostname and setdomainname will identify potential unauthorized changes

to host and domainname of a system. The changing of these names could potentially break
security parameters that are set based on those names. The /etc/hosts file is monitored
for changes in the file that can indicate an unauthorized intruder is trying to change
machine associations with IP addresses and trick users and processes into connecting to
unintended machines. Monitoring /etc/issue and /etc/issue.net is important, as
intruders could put disinformation into those files and trick users into providing
information to the intruder. Monitoring /etc/sysconfig/network is important as it can
show if network interfaces or scripts are being modified in a way that can lead to the
machine becoming unavailable or compromised. All audit records will be tagged with the
identifier "system-locale."
322 | P a g e
Audit:
# grep system-locale /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

# auditctl -l | grep system-locale
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S sethostname -S setdomainname -k system-locale

-w /etc/issue -p wa -k system-locale
-w /etc/issue.net -p wa -k system-locale
-w /etc/hosts -p wa -k system-locale
-w /etc/sysconfig/network -p wa -k system-locale
# grep system-locale /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

# auditctl -l | grep system-locale

323 | P a g e
Remediation:
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-system_local.rules

.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-system_local.rules

CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

v7
● ●
324 | P a g e
4.1.9 Ensure discretionary access control permission modification events
are collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor changes to file permissions, attributes, ownership and group. The parameters in
this section track changes for system calls that affect file permissions and attributes. The
chmod , fchmod and fchmodat system calls affect the permissions associated with a file. The
chown , fchown , fchownat and lchown system calls affect owner and group attributes on a
file. The setxattr , lsetxattr , fsetxattr (set extended file attributes) and removexattr ,
lremovexattr , fremovexattr (remove extended file attributes) control extended file
attributes. In all cases, an audit record will only be written for non-system user ids (auid >=
1000) and will ignore Daemon events (auid = 4294967295). All audit records will be
tagged with the identifier "perm_mod."
# awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}' /etc/login.defs
If your systems' UID_MIN is not 1000, replace audit>=1000 with audit>=<UID_MIN for
your system> in the Audit and Remediation procedures.
Rationale:
Monitoring for changes in file attributes could alert a system administrator to activity that
could indicate intruder activity or policy violation.
Audit:

# grep perm_mod /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
325 | P a g e
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S chmod -S fchmod -S fchmodat -F auid>=1000 -F
auid!=4294967295 -k perm_mod
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S chown -S fchown -S fchownat -S lchown -F
auid>=1000 -F auid!=4294967295 -k perm_mod
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S setxattr -S lsetxattr -S fsetxattr -S
removexattr -S lremovexattr -S fremovexattr -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=4294967295
-k perm_mod
# auditctl -l | grep perm_mod
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S chmod,fchmod,fchmodat -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=-1

-F key=perm_mod
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S lchown,fchown,chown,fchownat -F auid>=1000 -F
auid!=-1 -F key=perm_mod
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S
setxattr,lsetxattr,fsetxattr,removexattr,lremovexattr,fremovexattr -F
auid>=1000 -F auid!=-1 -F key=perm_mod

# grep perm_mod /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

-k perm_mod
-k perm_mod
# auditctl -l | grep auditctl -l | grep perm_mod
326 | P a g e
-F key=perm_mod
-F key=perm_mod
-a always,exit -F arch=b64 -S chown,fchown,lchown,fchownat -F auid>=1000 -F
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S lchown,fchown,chown,fchownat -F auid>=1000 -F
Remediation:
For 32 bit systems edit or create a file in the /etc/audit/rules.d/ directory ending in
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-perm_mod.rules

-k perm_mod
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-perm_mod.rules

-k perm_mod
-k perm_mod
327 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

v7
● ●
328 | P a g e
4.1.10 Ensure unsuccessful unauthorized file access attempts are
Description:
Monitor for unsuccessful attempts to access files. The parameters below are associated
with system calls that control creation ( creat ), opening ( open , openat ) and truncation (
truncate , ftruncate ) of files. An audit log record will only be written if the user is a non-
privileged user (auid > = 1000), is not a Daemon event (auid=4294967295) and if the
system call returned EACCES (permission denied to the file) or EPERM (some other
permanent error associated with the specific system call). All audit records will be tagged
with the identifier "access."
Rationale:
Failed attempts to open, create or truncate files could be an indication that an individual or
process is trying to gain unauthorized access to the system.
Audit:

# grep access /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
329 | P a g e
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S creat -S open -S openat -S truncate -S
ftruncate -F exit=-EACCES -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=4294967295 -k access
ftruncate -F exit=-EPERM -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=4294967295 -k access
# auditctl -l | grep access

ftruncate -F exit=-EACCES -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=-1 -k access
ftruncate -F exit=-EPERM -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=-1 -k access

# grep access /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

# auditctl -l | grep access

330 | P a g e
Remediation:
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-access.rules

.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-access.rules

CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

Sensitive Data
Event Monitoring).
331 | P a g e
4.1.11 Ensure events that modify user/group information are collected
(Automated)
Description:
Record events affecting the group , passwd (user IDs), shadow and gshadow (passwords) or
/etc/security/opasswd (old passwords, based on remember parameter in the PAM
configuration) files. The parameters in this section will watch the files to see if they have
been opened for write or have had attribute changes (e.g. permissions) and tag them with
the identifier "identity" in the audit log file.
Rationale:
Unexpected changes to these files could be an indication that the system has been
compromised and that an unauthorized user is attempting to hide their activities or
compromise additional accounts.
Audit:
# grep identity /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

Verify the output matches:
-w /etc/group -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/passwd -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/gshadow -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/shadow -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/security/opasswd -p wa -k identity
# auditctl -l | grep identity

Verify the output matches:
332 | P a g e
Remediation:

Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-identity.rules
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●
4.8 Log and Alert on Changes to Administrative Group

v7 Membership ● ●
Configure systems to issue a log entry and alert when an account is added to or
removed from any group assigned administrative privileges.
333 | P a g e
4.1.12 Ensure successful file system mounts are collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor the use of the mount system call. The mount (and umount ) system call controls the
mounting and unmounting of file systems. The parameters below configure the system to
create an audit record when the mount system call is used by a non-privileged user
Rationale:
It is highly unusual for a non privileged user to mount file systems to the system. While
tracking mount commands gives the system administrator evidence that external media
may have been mounted (based on a review of the source of the mount and confirming it's
an external media type), it does not conclusively indicate that data was exported to the
media. System administrators who wish to determine if data were exported, would also
have to track successful open , creat and truncate system calls requiring write access to a
file under the mount point of the external media file system. This could give a fair
indication that a write occurred. The only way to truly prove it, would be to track
successful writes to the external media. Tracking write system calls could quickly fill up the
audit log and is not recommended. Recommendations on configuration options to track
data export to media is beyond the scope of this document.
334 | P a g e
Audit:

# grep mounts /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S mount -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=4294967295 -k

mounts
# auditctl -l | grep mounts
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S mount -F auid>=1000 -F auid!=-1 -k mounts

# grep mounts /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

mounts
mounts
# auditctl -l | grep mounts

335 | P a g e
Remediation:
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-mounts.rules

mounts
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-mounts.rules

mounts
mounts
This tracks successful and unsuccessful mount commands. File system mounts do not have
to come from external media and this action still does not verify write (e.g. CD ROMS).
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

336 | P a g e
4.1.13 Ensure use of privileged commands is collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor privileged programs (those that have the setuid and/or setgid bit set on execution)
to determine if unprivileged users are running these commands.
Rationale:
Execution of privileged commands by non-privileged users could be an indication of

someone trying to gain unauthorized access to the system.
Audit:
Run the following command replacing <partition> with a list of partitions where
programs can be executed from on your system:
# find <partition> -xdev $ -perm -4000 -o -perm -2000 $ -type f | awk

'{print "-a always,exit -F path=" $1 " -F perm=x -F auid>='"$(awk
'/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}' /etc/login.defs)"' -F auid!=4294967295 -k
privileged" }'
Verify all resulting lines are a .rules file in /etc/audit/rules.d/ and the output of
auditctl -l.
Note: The .rules file output will be auid!=-1 not auid!=4294967295
337 | P a g e
Remediation:
To remediate this issue, the system administrator will have to execute a find command to
locate all the privileged programs and then add an audit line for each one of them.
The audit parameters associated with this are as follows:
 -F path=" $1 " - will populate each file name found through the find command and
processed by awk.
 -F perm=x - will write an audit record if the file is executed.
 -F audit>=1000 - will write a record if the user executing the command is not a
privileged user.
 -F auid!= 4294967295 - will ignore Daemon events
All audit records should be tagged with the identifier "privileged".

Run the following command replacing with a list of partitions where programs can be
executed from on your system:
# find <partition> -xdev $ -perm -4000 -o -perm -2000 $ -type f | awk

'{print "-a always,exit -F path=" $1 " -F perm=x -F auid>='"$(awk
'/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}' /etc/login.defs)"' -F auid!=4294967295 -k
privileged" }'
Edit or create a file in the /etc/audit/rules.d/ directory ending in .rules and add all
resulting lines to the file.
Example:
# find / -xdev $ -perm -4000 -o -perm -2000 $ -type f | awk '{print "-a
always,exit -F path=" $1 " -F perm=x -F auid>='"$(awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print
$2}' /etc/login.defs)"' -F auid!=4294967295 -k privileged" }' >>
/etc/audit/rules.d/50-privileged.rules
338 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

339 | P a g e
4.1.14 Ensure file deletion events by users are collected (Automated)
Description:
Monitor the use of system calls associated with the deletion or renaming of files and file
attributes. This configuration statement sets up monitoring for the unlink (remove a file),
unlinkat (remove a file attribute), rename (rename a file) and renameat (rename a file
attribute) system calls and tags them with the identifier "delete".
Rationale:
Monitoring these calls from non-privileged users could provide a system administrator
with evidence that inappropriate removal of files and file attributes associated with
protected files is occurring. While this audit option will look at all events, system
administrators will want to look for specific privileged files that are being deleted or
altered.
340 | P a g e
Audit:

# grep delete /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S unlink -S unlinkat -S rename -S renameat -F

auid>=1000 -F auid!=4294967295 -k delete
# auditctl -l | grep delete


# grep delete /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules

# auditctl -l | grep delete

auid>=1000 -F auid!=-1 -k delete
auid>=1000 -F auid!=-1 -k delete
341 | P a g e
Remediation:
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-deletion.rules

.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-deletion.rules

At a minimum, configure the audit system to collect file deletion events for all users and
root.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●
v7 13 Data Protection
Data Protection
342 | P a g e
4.1.15 Ensure kernel module loading and unloading is collected
(Automated)
Description:
Monitor the loading and unloading of kernel modules. The programs insmod (install a
kernel module), rmmod (remove a kernel module), and modprobe (a more sophisticated
program to load and unload modules, as well as some other features) control loading and
unloading of modules. The init_module (load a module) and delete_module (delete a
module) system calls control loading and unloading of modules. Any execution of the
loading and unloading module programs and system calls will trigger an audit record with
an identifier of "modules".
Rationale:
Monitoring the use of insmod , rmmod and modprobe could provide system administrators
with evidence that an unauthorized user loaded or unloaded a kernel module, possibly
compromising the security of the system. Monitoring of the init_module and
delete_module system calls would reflect an unauthorized user attempting to use a
different program to load and unload modules.
343 | P a g e
Audit:

# grep modules /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
-w /sbin/insmod -p x -k modules
-w /sbin/rmmod -p x -k modules
-w /sbin/modprobe -p x -k modules
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S init_module -S delete_module -k modules
# auditctl -l | grep modules
-a always,exit -F arch=b32 -S init_module,delete_module -F key=modules

# grep modules /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
# auditctl -l | grep modules
-a always,exit -F arch=b64 -S init_module,delete_module -F key=modules
344 | P a g e
Remediation:
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-modules.rules
.rules
Example: vi /etc/audit/rules.d/50-modules.rules
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

345 | P a g e
4.1.16 Ensure system administrator actions (sudolog) are collected
(Automated)
Description:
Monitor the sudo log file. If the system has been properly configured to disable the use of
the su command and force all administrators to have to log in first and then use sudo to
execute privileged commands, then all administrator commands will be logged to
/var/log/sudo.log . Any time a command is executed, an audit event will be triggered as
the /var/log/sudo.log file will be opened for write and the executed administration
command will be written to the log.
Rationale:
Changes in /var/log/sudo.log indicate that an administrator has executed a command or

the log file itself has been tampered with. Administrators will want to correlate the events
written to the audit trail with the records written to /var/log/sudo.log to verify if
unauthorized commands have been executed.
Audit:
# grep -P -- "^\h*-w\h+$(grep -r logfile /etc/sudoers* | sed -e

's/.*logfile=//;s/,? .*//' | tr -d \")\h+-p\h+wa\h+-k\h+\H+\h*(\h+.*)?$"
/etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules
# auditctl -l | grep -P -- "^\h*-w\h+$(grep -r logfile /etc/sudoers* | sed -

e 's/.*logfile=//;s/,? .*//' | tr -d \")\h+-p\h+wa\h+-k\h+\H+\h*(\h+.*)?$"
Verify output of both matches the output of the following command, and the the output
includes a file path
echo "-w $(grep -r logfile /etc/sudoers* | sed -e 's/.*logfile=//;s/,? .*//'

| tr -d \") -p wa -k actions"
Example Output:
-w /var/log/sudo.log -p wa -k actions
346 | P a g e
Remediation:
Edit or create a file in the /etc/audit/rules.d/ directory ending in .rules and add the
following line:
-w <Path to sudo logfile> -p wa -k actions
Example:
# echo "-w $(grep -r logfile /etc/sudoers* | sed -e 's/.*logfile=//;s/,?

.*//' | tr -d \") -p wa -k actions" >> /etc/audit/rules.d/50-actions.rules
The system must be configured with su disabled (See Recommendation: "Ensure access to
the su command is restricted") to force all command execution through sudo. This will not
be effective on the console, as administrators can log in as root.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

v7 Login ● ●
347 | P a g e
4.1.17 Ensure the audit configuration is immutable (Automated)
Description:
Set system audit so that audit rules cannot be modified with auditctl . Setting the flag "-e
2" forces audit to be put in immutable mode. Audit changes can only be made on system
reboot.
Rationale:
In immutable mode, unauthorized users cannot execute changes to the audit system to
potentially hide malicious activity and then put the audit rules back. Users would most
likely notice a system reboot and that could alert administrators of an attempt to make
unauthorized audit changes.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify output matches:
# grep "^\s*[^#]" /etc/audit/rules.d/*.rules | tail -1
-e 2
Remediation:
Edit or create the file /etc/audit/rules.d/99-finalize.rules and add the following line
at the end of the file:
-e 2
This setting will ensure reloading the auditd config to set active settings requires a system
reboot.
348 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

v7
Ensure that local logging has been enabled on all systems and networking devices.
● ● ●

v7
● ●
elements.
349 | P a g e
4.2 Configure Logging
Logging services should be configured to prevent information leaks and to aggregate logs
on a remote server so that they can be reviewed in the event of a system compromise and
ease log analysis.
350 | P a g e
4.2.1 Configure rsyslog
The rsyslog software is recommended as a replacement for the syslogd daemon and
provides improvements over syslogd, such as connection-oriented (i.e. TCP) transmission
of logs, the option to log to database formats, and the encryption of log data en route to a
central logging server. Note: This section only applies if rsyslog is installed on the system.
351 | P a g e
4.2.1.1 Ensure rsyslog is installed (Automated)
Description:
The rsyslog software is a recommended replacement to the original syslogd daemon

which provide improvements over syslogd, such as connection-oriented (i.e. TCP)
transmission of logs, the option to log to database formats, and the encryption of log data
en route to a central logging server.
Rationale:
The security enhancements of rsyslog such as connection-oriented (i.e. TCP) transmission

of logs, the option to log to database formats, and the encryption of log data en route to a
central logging server) justify installing and configuring the package.
Audit:
Verify rsyslog is installed.

# rpm -q rsyslog
rsyslog-<version>
Remediation:
Run the folloing command to install rsyslog:
# dnf install rsyslog
352 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


devices.

v7
● ●
elements.
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4.2.1.2 Ensure rsyslog Service is enabled (Automated)
Description:
Once the rsyslog package is installed it needs to be activated.
Rationale:
If the rsyslog service is not activated the system may default to the syslogd service or lack
logging instead.
Audit:
Run the following command to verify rsyslog is enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled rsyslog
enabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable rsyslog:
# systemctl --now enable rsyslog
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4.2.1.3 Ensure rsyslog default file permissions configured (Automated)
Description:
rsyslog will create logfiles that do not already exist on the system. This setting controls
what permissions will be applied to these newly created files.
Rationale:
It is important to ensure that log files have the correct permissions to ensure that sensitive
data is archived and protected.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that $FileCreateMode is 0640 or more restrictive:
# grep ^\$FileCreateMode /etc/rsyslog.conf /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/rsyslog.conf and /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf files and set $FileCreateMode to

0640 or more restrictive:
$FileCreateMode 0640
References:
1. See the rsyslog.conf(5) man page for more information.
You should also ensure this is not overridden with less restrictive settings in any
/etc/rsyslog.d/* conf file.
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4.2.1.4 Ensure logging is configured (Manual)
Description:
The /etc/rsyslog.conf and /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf files specifies rules for logging and
which files are to be used to log certain classes of messages.
Rationale:
A great deal of important security-related information is sent via rsyslog (e.g., successful
and failed su attempts, failed login attempts, root login attempts, etc.).
Audit:
Review the contents of the /etc/rsyslog.conf and /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf files to ensure

appropriate logging is set. In addition, run the following command and verify that the log
files are logging information:
# ls -l /var/log/
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Remediation:
Edit the following lines in the /etc/rsyslog.conf and /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf files as

appropriate for your environment:
*.emerg :omusrmsg:*
auth,authpriv.* /var/log/secure
mail.* -/var/log/mail
mail.info -/var/log/mail.info
mail.warning -/var/log/mail.warn
mail.err /var/log/mail.err
news.crit -/var/log/news/news.crit
news.err -/var/log/news/news.err
news.notice -/var/log/news/news.notice
*.=warning;*.=err -/var/log/warn
*.crit /var/log/warn
*.*;mail.none;news.none -/var/log/messages
local0,local1.* -/var/log/localmessages
Run the following command to reload the rsyslogd configuration:
# systemctl restart rsyslog
References:
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4.2.1.5 Ensure rsyslog is configured to send logs to a remote log host
(Automated)
Description:
The rsyslog utility supports the ability to send logs it gathers to a remote log host running
syslogd(8) or to receive messages from remote hosts, reducing administrative overhead.
Rationale:
Storing log data on a remote host protects log integrity from local attacks. If an attacker
gains root access on the local system, they could tamper with or remove log data that is
stored on the local system
Audit:
Review the /etc/rsyslog.conf and /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf files and verify that logs are
sent to a central host (where loghost.example.com is the name of your central log host):
# grep "^*.*[Î][Î]*@" /etc/rsyslog.conf /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf
*.* @@loghost.example.com
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/rsyslog.conf and /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf files and add the following line
(where loghost.example.com is the name of your central log host).
*.* @@loghost.example.com
References:
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The double "at" sign (@@) directs rsyslog to use TCP to send log messages to the server,
which is a more reliable transport mechanism than the default UDP protocol.
CIS Controls:
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8.9 Centralize Audit Logs

v8 Centralize, to the extent possible, audit log collection and retention across ● ●
enterprise assets.
6.6 Deploy SIEM or Log Analytic tool

v7 Deploy Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) or log analytic ● ●
tool for log correlation and analysis.
6.8 Regularly Tune SIEM

v7 On a regular basis, tune your SIEM system to better identify actionable events ●
and decrease event noise.
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4.2.1.6 Ensure remote rsyslog messages are only accepted on
designated log hosts. (Manual)
Description:
By default, rsyslog does not listen for log messages coming in from remote systems. The
ModLoad tells rsyslog to load the imtcp.so module so it can listen over a network via TCP.
The InputTCPServerRun option instructs rsyslogd to listen on the specified TCP port.
Rationale:
The guidance in the section ensures that remote log hosts are configured to only accept
rsyslog data from hosts within the specified domain and that those systems that are not
designed to be log hosts do not accept any remote rsyslog messages. This provides
protection from spoofed log data and ensures that system administrators are reviewing
reasonably complete syslog data in a central location.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify the resulting lines are uncommented on
designated log hosts and commented or removed on all others:
# grep '$ModLoad imtcp' /etc/rsyslog.conf /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf
$ModLoad imtcp
# grep '$InputTCPServerRun' /etc/rsyslog.conf /etc/rsyslog.d/*.conf
$InputTCPServerRun 514
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Remediation:
For hosts that are designated as log hosts, edit the /etc/rsyslog.conf file and un-
comment or add the following lines:
$ModLoad imtcp
$InputTCPServerRun 514
For hosts that are not designated as log hosts, edit the /etc/rsyslog.conf file and
comment or remove the following lines:
# $ModLoad imtcp
# $InputTCPServerRun 514
References:
1. See the rsyslog(8) man page for more information.
The $ModLoad imtcp line can have the .so extension added to the end of the module, or use
the full path to the module.
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4.2.2 Configure journald
systemd-journald is a system service that collects and stores logging data. It creates and
maintains structured, indexed journals based on logging information that is received from
a variety of sources: Kernel log messages, via kmsg
Any changes made to the systemd-journald configuration will require a re-start of systemd-
journald
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4.2.2.1 Ensure journald is configured to send logs to rsyslog
(Automated)
Description:
Data from journald may be stored in volatile memory or persisted locally on the server.
Utilities exist to accept remote export of journald logs, however, use of the rsyslog service
provides a consistent means of log collection and export.
Rationale:
Storing log data on a remote host protects log integrity from local attacks. If an attacker
gains root access on the local system, they could tamper with or remove log data that is
stored on the local system.
Audit:
Review /etc/systemd/journald.conf and verify that logs are forwarded to syslog
# grep -e ^\s*ForwardToSyslog /etc/systemd/journald.conf
ForwardToSyslog=yes
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/systemd/journald.conf file and add the following line:
ForwardToSyslog=yes
References:
1. https://github.com/konstruktoid/hardening/blob/master/systemd.adoc#etcsyste
mdjournaldconf
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This recommendation assumes that recommendation 4.2.1.5, "Ensure rsyslog is configured

to send logs to a remote log host" has been implemented.
As noted in the journald man pages, journald logs may be exported to rsyslog either
through the process mentioned here, or through a facility like systemd-journald.service.
There are trade-offs involved in each implementation, where ForwardToSyslog will
immediately capture all events (and forward to an external log server, if properly
configured), but may not capture all boot-up activities. Mechanisms such as systemd-
journald.service, on the other hand, will record bootup events, but may delay sending
the information to rsyslog, leading to the potential for log manipulation prior to export. Be
aware of the limitations of all tools employed to secure a system.
The main configuration file /etc/systemd/journald.conf is read before any of the custom
*.conf files. If there are custom configs present, they override the main configuration
parameters
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
8.9 Centralize Audit Logs

v8 Centralize, to the extent possible, audit log collection and retention across ● ●
enterprise assets.
6.5 Central Log Management

v7 Ensure that appropriate logs are being aggregated to a central log ● ●
management system for analysis and review.
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4.2.2.2 Ensure journald is configured to compress large log files
(Automated)
Description:
The journald system includes the capability of compressing overly large files to avoid filling
up the system with logs or making the logs unmanageably large.
Rationale:
Uncompressed large files may unexpectedly fill a filesystem leading to resource

unavailability. Compressing logs prior to write can prevent sudden, unexpected filesystem
impacts.
Audit:
Review /etc/systemd/journald.conf and verify that large files will be compressed:
# grep -e ^\s*Compress /etc/systemd/journald.conf
Compress=yes
Remediation:
Compress=yes
References:
mdjournaldconf
parameters
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4.2.2.3 Ensure journald is configured to write logfiles to persistent disk
(Automated)
Description:
Data from journald may be stored in volatile memory or persisted locally on the server.
Logs in memory will be lost upon a system reboot. By persisting logs to local disk on the
server they are protected from loss.
Rationale:
Writing log data to disk will provide the ability to forensically reconstruct events which
may have impacted the operations or security of a system even after a system crash or
reboot.
Audit:
Review /etc/systemd/journald.conf and verify that logs are persisted to disk:
# grep -e ^\s*Storage /etc/systemd/journald.conf
Storage=persistent
Remediation:
Storage=persistent
References:
mdjournaldconf
parameters
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4.2.3 Ensure permissions on all logfiles are configured (Automated)
Description:
Log files stored in /var/log/ contain logged information from many services on the system,
or on log hosts others as well.
Rationale:
It is important to ensure that log files have the correct permissions to ensure that sensitive
data is archived and protected.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify that other has no permissions on any files and
group does not have write or execute permissions on any files:
# find /var/log/ -type f -perm /g+wx,o+rwx -exec ls -l "{}" +
No output should be returned
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set permissions on all existing log files:
# find /var/log/ -type f -perm /g+wx,o+rwx -exec chmod g-wx,o-rwx "{}" +
You may also need to change the configuration for your logging software or services for any
logs that had incorrect permissions.
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4.3 Ensure logrotate is configured (Manual)
Description:
The system includes the capability of rotating log files regularly to avoid filling up the
system with logs or making the logs unmanageably large. The file
/etc/logrotate.d/syslog is the configuration file used to rotate log files created by
syslog or rsyslog.
Rationale:
By keeping the log files smaller and more manageable, a system administrator can easily
archive these files to another system and spend less time looking through inordinately
large log files.
Audit:
Review /etc/logrotate.conf and /etc/logrotate.d/* and verify logs are rotated

according to site policy.
Remediation:
Edit /etc/logrotate.conf and /etc/logrotate.d/* to ensure logs are rotated according

to site policy.
If no maxage setting is set for logrotate a situation can occur where logrotate is interrupted
and fails to delete rotated logfiles. It is recommended to set this to a value greater than the
longest any log file should exist on your system to ensure that any such logfile is removed
but standard rotation settings are not overridden.
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5 Access, Authentication and Authorization
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5.1 Configure cron
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5.1.1 Ensure cron daemon is enabled (Automated)
Description:
The cron daemon is used to execute batch jobs on the system.
Rationale:
While there may not be user jobs that need to be run on the system, the system does have
maintenance jobs that may include security monitoring that have to run, and cron is used
to execute them.
Audit:
Run the the following command to verify cron is enabled:
# systemctl is-enabled crond
enabled
Remediation:
Run the following command to enable cron:
# systemctl --now enable crond
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5.1.2 Ensure permissions on /etc/crontab are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/crontab file is used by cron to control its own jobs. The commands in this item
make sure that root is the user and group owner of the file and that only the owner can
access the file.
Rationale:
This file contains information on what system jobs are run by cron. Write access to these
files could provide unprivileged users with the ability to elevate their privileges. Read
access to these files could provide users with the ability to gain insight on system jobs that
run on the system and could provide them a way to gain unauthorized privileged access.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify Uid and Gid are both 0/root and Access does not
grant permissions to group or other :
# stat /etc/crontab
Access: (0600/-rw-------) Uid: ( 0/ root) Gid: ( 0/ root)
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on /etc/crontab :
# chown root:root /etc/crontab

# chmod og-rwx /etc/crontab
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5.1.3 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.hourly are configured
(Automated)
Description:
This directory contains system cron jobs that need to run on an hourly basis. The files in
this directory cannot be manipulated by the crontab command, but are instead edited by
system administrators using a text editor. The commands below restrict read/write and
search access to user and group root, preventing regular users from accessing this
directory.
Rationale:
Granting write access to this directory for non-privileged users could provide them the
means for gaining unauthorized elevated privileges. Granting read access to this directory
could give an unprivileged user insight in how to gain elevated privileges or circumvent
auditing controls.
Audit:
# stat /etc/cron.hourly
Access: (0700/drwx------) Uid: ( 0/ root) Gid: ( 0/ root)
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on /etc/cron.hourly :
# chown root:root /etc/cron.hourly
# chmod og-rwx /etc/cron.hourly
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5.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.daily are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/cron.daily directory contains system cron jobs that need to run on a daily basis.
The files in this directory cannot be manipulated by the crontab command, but are instead
edited by system administrators using a text editor. The commands below restrict
read/write and search access to user and group root, preventing regular users from
accessing this directory.
Rationale:
auditing controls.
Audit:
# stat /etc/cron.daily
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on /etc/cron.daily :
# chown root:root /etc/cron.daily
# chmod og-rwx /etc/cron.daily
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5.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.weekly are configured
(Automated)
Description:
The /etc/cron.weekly directory contains system cron jobs that need to run on a weekly
basis. The files in this directory cannot be manipulated by the crontab command, but are
instead edited by system administrators using a text editor. The commands below restrict
Rationale:
auditing controls.
Audit:
# stat /etc/cron.weekly
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on /etc/cron.weekly :
# chown root:root /etc/cron.weekly
# chmod og-rwx /etc/cron.weekly
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5.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.monthly are configured
(Automated)
Description:
The /etc/cron.monthly directory contains system cron jobs that need to run on a monthly
basis. The files in this directory cannot be manipulated by the crontab command, but are
instead edited by system administrators using a text editor. The commands below restrict
Rationale:
auditing controls.
Audit:
# stat /etc/cron.monthly
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on /etc/cron.monthly :
# chown root:root /etc/cron.monthly
# chmod og-rwx /etc/cron.monthly
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5.1.7 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.d are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/cron.d directory contains system cron jobs that need to run in a similar manner
to the hourly, daily weekly and monthly jobs from /etc/crontab , but require more
granular control as to when they run. The files in this directory cannot be manipulated by
the crontab command, but are instead edited by system administrators using a text editor.
The commands below restrict read/write and search access to user and group root,
preventing regular users from accessing this directory.
Rationale:
auditing controls.
Audit:
# stat /etc/cron.d
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on /etc/cron.d :
# chown root:root /etc/cron.d
# chmod og-rwx /etc/cron.d
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5.1.8 Ensure at/cron is restricted to authorized users (Automated)
Description:
Configure /etc/cron.allow and /etc/at.allow to allow specific users to use these

services. If /etc/cron.allow or /etc/at.allow do not exist, then /etc/at.deny and
/etc/cron.deny are checked. Any user not specifically defined in those files is allowed to
use at and cron. By removing the files, only users in /etc/cron.allow and /etc/at.allow
are allowed to use at and cron. Note that even though a given user is not listed in
cron.allow , cron jobs can still be run as that user. The cron.allow file only controls
administrative access to the crontab command for scheduling and modifying cron jobs.
Rationale:
On many systems, only the system administrator is authorized to schedule cron jobs. Using
the cron.allow file to control who can run cron jobs enforces this policy. It is easier to
manage an allow list than a deny list. In a deny list, you could potentially add a user ID to
the system and forget to add it to the deny files.
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Audit:
Run the following command to verify /etc/cron.deny doesn't exist:
# [ -e /etc/cron.deny ] && stat /etc/cron.deny
Run the following command to verify /etc/at.deny doesn't exist:
# [ -e /etc/at.deny ] && stat /etc/at.deny
grant permissions to group or other for /etc/cron.allow:
# stat /etc/cron.allow
grant permissions to group or other for /etc/at.allow:
# stat /etc/at.allow
Remediation:
Run the following commands to:
 remove /etc/cron.deny and /etc/at.deny

 create, set permissions, and set and ownership for /etc/cron.allow and
/etc/at.allow:
# rm /etc/cron.deny
# rm /etc/at.deny
# touch /etc/cron.allow
# touch /etc/at.allow
# chmod og-rwx /etc/cron.allow

# chmod og-rwx /etc/at.allow
# chown root:root /etc/cron.allow

# chown root:root /etc/at.allow
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v7 16 Account Monitoring and Control

Account Monitoring and Control
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5.2 SSH Server Configuration
SSH is a secure, encrypted replacement for common login services such as telnet, ftp,
rlogin, rsh, and rcp. It is strongly recommended that sites abandon older clear-text login
protocols and use SSH to prevent session hijacking and sniffing of sensitive data off the
network.
Note:
 The recommendations in this section only apply if the SSH daemon is installed on
the system, if remote access is not required the SSH daemon can be removed and
this section skipped.
 Once all configuration changes have been made to /etc/ssh/sshd_config, the sshd
configuration must be reloaded:
Command to re-load the SSH daemon configuration:
# systemctl reload sshd
Command to remove the SSH daemon:
# yum remove openssh-server
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5.2.1 Ensure permissions on /etc/ssh/sshd_config are configured
(Automated)
Description:
The /etc/ssh/sshd_config file contains configuration specifications for sshd. The

command below sets the owner and group of the file to root.
Rationale:
The /etc/ssh/sshd_config file needs to be protected from unauthorized changes by non-

privileged users.
Audit:
grant permissions to group or other:
# stat /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set ownership and permissions on /etc/ssh/sshd_config:
# chown root:root /etc/ssh/sshd_config

# chmod og-rwx /etc/ssh/sshd_config
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5.2.2 Ensure SSH access is limited (Automated)
Description:
There are several options available to limit which users and group can access the system
via SSH. It is recommended that at least one of the following options be leveraged:
 AllowUsers:
o The AllowUsers variable gives the system administrator the option of
allowing specific users to ssh into the system. The list consists of space
separated user names. Numeric user IDs are not recognized with this
variable. If a system administrator wants to restrict user access further by
only allowing the allowed users to log in from a particular host, the entry can
be specified in the form of user@host.
 AllowGroups:
o The AllowGroups variable gives the system administrator the option of
allowing specific groups of users to ssh into the system. The list consists of
space separated group names. Numeric group IDs are not recognized with
this variable.
 DenyUsers:
o The DenyUsers variable gives the system administrator the option of denying
specific users to ssh into the system. The list consists of space separated user
names. Numeric user IDs are not recognized with this variable. If a system
administrator wants to restrict user access further by specifically denying a
user's access from a particular host, the entry can be specified in the form of
user@host.
 DenyGroups:
o The DenyGroups variable gives the system administrator the option of
denying specific groups of users to ssh into the system. The list consists of
space separated group names. Numeric group IDs are not recognized with
this variable.
Rationale:
Restricting which users can remotely access the system via SSH will help ensure that only
authorized users access the system.
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Audit:
Run the following commands and verify the output:
# sshd -T -C user=root -C host="$(hostname)" -C addr="$(grep $(hostname)

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep -Pi
'^\h*(allow|deny)(users|groups)\h+\H+(\h+.*)?$'
# grep -Pi '^\h*(allow|deny)(users|groups)\h+\H+(\h+.*)?$'

/etc/ssh/sshd_config
Verify that the output of both commands matches at least one of the following lines:
allowusers <userlist>
allowgroups <grouplist>
denyusers <userlist>
denygroups <grouplist>
Remediation:
Edit the /etc/ssh/sshd_config file to set one or more of the parameter as follows:
AllowUsers <userlist>
OR
AllowGroups <grouplist>
OR
DenyUsers <userlist>
OR
DenyGroups <grouplist>
Default Value:
None
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
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5.2.3 Ensure permissions on SSH private host key files are configured
(Automated)
Description:
An SSH private key is one of two files used in SSH public key authentication. In this
authentication method, the possession of the private key is proof of identity. Only a private
key that corresponds to a public key will be able to authenticate successfully. The private
keys need to be stored and handled carefully, and no copies of the private key should be
distributed.
Rationale:
If an unauthorized user obtains the private SSH host key file, the host could be
impersonated
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Audit:
Note: Either mode 0640 with owner root and group ssh_keys OR mode 0600 with owner
root and group root is acceptable
Run the following command and verify either:
Uid is 0/root and Gid is /ssh_keys and permissions 0640 or more restrictive:
OR
Uid is 0/root and Gid is 0/root and permissions are 0600 or more restrictive:
# find /etc/ssh -xdev -type f -name 'ssh_host_*_key' -exec stat {} \;
Example output:
File: ‘/etc/ssh/ssh_host_rsa_key’
Size: 1679 Blocks: 8 IO Block: 4096 regular file
Device: ca01h/51713d Inode: 8628138 Links: 1
Access: (0640/-rw-r-----) Uid: ( 0/ root) Gid: ( 993/ssh_keys)
Access: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.861750616 +0000
Modify: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.861750616 +0000
Change: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.873750616 +0000
Birth: -
File: ‘/etc/ssh/ssh_host_ecdsa_key’
Access: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.897750616 +0000
Modify: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.897750616 +0000
Change: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.905750616 +0000
Birth: -
File: ‘/etc/ssh/ssh_host_ed25519_key’
Access: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.945750616 +0000
Modify: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.945750616 +0000
Change: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.957750616 +0000
Birth: -
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set permissions, ownership, and group on the private SSH
host key files:
# find /etc/ssh -xdev -type f -name 'ssh_host_*_key' -exec chmod u-x,g-wx,o-

rwx {} \;
# find /etc/ssh -xdev -type f -name 'ssh_host_*_key' -exec chown
root:ssh_keys {} \;
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

402 | P a g e
5.2.4 Ensure permissions on SSH public host key files are configured
(Automated)
Description:
An SSH public key is one of two files used in SSH public key authentication. In this
authentication method, a public key is a key that can be used for verifying digital signatures
generated using a corresponding private key. Only a public key that corresponds to a
private key will be able to authenticate successfully.
Rationale:
If a public host key file is modified by an unauthorized user, the SSH service may be
compromised.
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Audit:
Run the following command and verify Access does not grant write or execute permissions
to group or other for all returned files:
# find /etc/ssh -xdev -type f -name 'ssh_host_*_key.pub' -exec stat {} \;
Example output:
File: ‘/etc/ssh/ssh_host_rsa_key.pub’
Access: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.861750616 +0000
Modify: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.861750616 +0000
Change: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.881750616 +0000
Birth: -
File: ‘/etc/ssh/ssh_host_ecdsa_key.pub’
Access: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.897750616 +0000
Modify: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.897750616 +0000
Change: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.917750616 +0000
Birth: -
File: ‘/etc/ssh/ssh_host_ed25519_key.pub’
Access: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.945750616 +0000
Modify: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.945750616 +0000
Change: 2018-10-22 18:24:56.961750616 +0000
Birth: -
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set permissions and ownership on the SSH host public key
files
# find /etc/ssh -xdev -type f -name 'ssh_host_*_key.pub' -exec chmod u-x,go-

wx {} \;
# find /etc/ssh -xdev -type f -name 'ssh_host_*_key.pub' -exec chown
root:root {} \;
Default Value:
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

405 | P a g e
5.2.5 Ensure SSH LogLevel is appropriate (Automated)
Description:
INFO level is the basic level that only records login activity of SSH users. In many situations,
such as Incident Response, it is important to determine when a particular user was active
on a system. The logout record can eliminate those users who disconnected, which helps
narrow the field.
VERBOSE level specifies that login and logout activity as well as the key fingerprint for any
SSH key used for login will be logged. This information is important for SSH key
management, especially in legacy environments.
Rationale:
SSH provides several logging levels with varying amounts of verbosity. DEBUG is specifically
not recommended other than strictly for debugging SSH communications since it provides
so much data that it is difficult to identify important security information.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that output matches loglevel VERBOSE or loglevel
INFO:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep loglevel
loglevel VERBOSE or loglevel INFO
Run the following command and verify the output matches:
# grep -i 'loglevel' /etc/ssh/sshd_config | grep -Evi '(VERBOSE|INFO)'
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Remediation:
Edit the /etc/ssh/sshd_config file to set the parameter as follows:
LogLevel VERBOSE
OR
LogLevel INFO
Default Value:
LogLevel INFO
References:
1. https://www.ssh.com/ssh/sshd_config/
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


devices.

v7
● ●
elements.
407 | P a g e
5.2.6 Ensure SSH X11 forwarding is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The X11Forwarding parameter provides the ability to tunnel X11 traffic through the
connection to enable remote graphic connections.
Rationale:
Disable X11 forwarding unless there is an operational requirement to use X11 applications
directly. There is a small risk that the remote X11 servers of users who are logged in via
SSH with X11 forwarding could be compromised by other users on the X11 server. Note
that even if X11 forwarding is disabled, users can always install their own forwarders.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that output matches:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep -i x11forwarding
x11forwarding no
Run the following command and verify that the output matches:
# grep -Ei '^\s*x11forwarding\s+yes' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Nothing is returned
Remediation:
X11Forwarding no
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


v7 Running ● ●
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5.2.7 Ensure SSH MaxAuthTries is set to 4 or less (Automated)
Description:
The MaxAuthTries parameter specifies the maximum number of authentication attempts

permitted per connection. When the login failure count reaches half the number, error
messages will be written to the syslog file detailing the login failure.
Rationale:
Setting the MaxAuthTries parameter to a low number will minimize the risk of successful
brute force attacks to the SSH server. While the recommended setting is 4, set the number
based on site policy.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that output MaxAuthTries is 4 or less:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep maxauthtries
maxauthtries 4
Run the following command and verify that the output:
# grep -Ei '^\s*maxauthtries\s+([5-9]|[1-9][0-9]+)' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Nothing is returned
Remediation:
MaxAuthTries 4
Default Value:
MaxAuthTries 6
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References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ●

411 | P a g e
5.2.8 Ensure SSH IgnoreRhosts is enabled (Automated)
Description:
The IgnoreRhosts parameter specifies that .rhosts and .shosts files will not be used in
RhostsRSAAuthentication or HostbasedAuthentication.
Rationale:
Setting this parameter forces users to enter a password when authenticating with ssh.
Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep ignorerhosts
ignorerhosts yes
Run the following command and verify the output:
# grep -Ei '^\s*ignorerhosts\s+no\b' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
IgnoreRhosts yes
Default Value:
IgnoreRhosts yes
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

v7 Running ● ●
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5.2.9 Ensure SSH HostbasedAuthentication is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The HostbasedAuthentication parameter specifies if authentication is allowed through

trusted hosts via the user of .rhosts, or /etc/hosts.equiv, along with successful public
key client host authentication. This option only applies to SSH Protocol Version 2.
Rationale:
Even though the .rhosts files are ineffective if support is disabled in /etc/pam.conf,
disabling the ability to use .rhosts files in SSH provides an additional layer of protection.
Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep hostbasedauthentication
hostbasedauthentication no
Run the following command and verify the output matches:
# grep -Ei '^\s*HostbasedAuthentication\s+yes' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
HostbasedAuthentication no
``
Default Value:
HostbasedAuthentication no
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References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
16.3 Require Multi-factor Authentication

v7 Require multi-factor authentication for all user accounts, on all systems, whether ● ●
managed onsite or by a third-party provider.
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5.2.10 Ensure SSH root login is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The PermitRootLogin parameter specifies if the root user can log in using ssh. The default
is no.
Rationale:
Disallowing root logins over SSH requires system admins to authenticate using their own
individual account, then escalating to root via sudo or su. This in turn limits opportunity for
non-repudiation and provides a clear audit trail in the event of a security incident
Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep permitrootlogin
permitrootlogin no
# grep -Ei '^\s*PermitRootLogin\s+yes' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
PermitRootLogin no
Default Value:
PermitRootLogin without-password
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
416 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
5.4 Restrict Administrator Privileges to Dedicated

Administrator Accounts
v8 Restrict administrator privileges to dedicated administrator accounts on ● ● ●
enterprise assets. Conduct general computing activities, such as internet browsing,
email, and productivity suite use, from the user’s primary, non-privileged account.

v7
● ● ●
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5.2.11 Ensure SSH PermitEmptyPasswords is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The PermitEmptyPasswords parameter specifies if the SSH server allows login to accounts
with empty password strings.
Rationale:
Disallowing remote shell access to accounts that have an empty password reduces the
probability of unauthorized access to the system
Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep permitemptypasswords
permitemptypasswords no
# grep -Ei '^\s*PermitEmptyPasswords\s+yes' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
PermitEmptyPasswords no
Default Value:
PermitEmptyPasswords no
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
418 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
16.3 Require Multi-factor Authentication

v7 Require multi-factor authentication for all user accounts, on all systems, whether ● ●
managed onsite or by a third-party provider.
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5.2.12 Ensure SSH PermitUserEnvironment is disabled (Automated)
Description:
The PermitUserEnvironment option allows users to present environment options to the

ssh daemon.
Rationale:
Permitting users the ability to set environment variables through the SSH daemon could
potentially allow users to bypass security controls (e.g. setting an execution path that has
ssh executing trojan'd programs)
Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep permituserenvironment
permituserenvironment no
# grep -Ei '^\s*PermitUserEnvironment\s+yes' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
PermitUserEnvironment no
Default Value:
PermitUserEnvironment no
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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5.2.13 Ensure SSH Idle Timeout Interval is configured (Automated)
Description:
The two options ClientAliveInterval and ClientAliveCountMax control the timeout of

ssh sessions.
 ClientAliveInterval sets a timeout interval in seconds after which if no data has

been received from the client, sshd will send a message through the encrypted
channel to request a response from the client. The default is 0, indicating that these
messages will not be sent to the client.
 ClientAliveCountMax sets the number of client alive messages which may be sent
without sshd receiving any messages back from the client. If this threshold is
reached while client alive messages are being sent, sshd will disconnect the client,
terminating the session. The default value is 3.
o The client alive messages are sent through the encrypted channel
o Setting ClientAliveCountMax to 0 disables connection termination
Example: The default value is 3. If ClientAliveInterval is set to 15, and

ClientAliveCountMax is left at the default, unresponsive SSH clients will be disconnected
after approximately 45 seconds
Rationale:
Having no timeout value associated with a connection could allow an unauthorized user
access to another user's ssh session (e.g. user walks away from their computer and doesn't
lock the screen). Setting a timeout value reduces this risk.
 The recommended ClientAliveInterval setting is no greater than 900 seconds (15

minutes)
 The recommended ClientAliveCountMax setting is 0
 At the 15 minute interval, if the ssh session is inactive, the session will be
terminated.
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Impact:
In some cases this setting may cause termination of long-running scripts over SSH or
remote automation tools which rely on SSH. In developing the local site policy, the
requirements of such scripts should be considered and appropriate ServerAliveInterval
and ClientAliveInterval settings should be calculated to insure operational continuity.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify ClientAliveInterval is between 1 and 900:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep clientaliveinterval
clientaliveinterval 900
Run the following command and verify ClientAliveCountMax is 0:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep clientalivecountmax
clientalivecountmax 3
Run the following commands and verify the output:
# grep -Ei '^\s*ClientAliveInterval\s+(0|9[0-9][1-9]|[1-9][0-9][0-9][0-

9]+|1[6-9]m|[2-9][0-9]m|[1-9][0-9][0-9]+m)\b' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
# grep -Ei '^\s*ClientAliveCountMax\s+([1-9]|[1-9][0-9]+)\b'

Remediation:
Edit the /etc/ssh/sshd_config file to set the parameters according to site policy. This
should include ClientAliveInterval between 1 and 900 and ClientAliveCountMax of 0:
ClientAliveInterval 900
ClientAliveCountMax 0
Default Value:
ClientAliveInterval 0
ClientAliveCountMax 3
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References:
1. https://man.openbsd.org/sshd_config
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
16.11 Lock Workstation Sessions After Inactivity

v7
Automatically lock workstation sessions after a standard period of inactivity.
● ● ●
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5.2.14 Ensure SSH LoginGraceTime is set to one minute or less
(Automated)
Description:
The LoginGraceTime parameter specifies the time allowed for successful authentication to
the SSH server. The longer the Grace period is the more open unauthenticated connections
can exist. Like other session controls in this session the Grace Period should be limited to
appropriate organizational limits to ensure the service is available for needed access.
Rationale:
Setting the LoginGraceTime parameter to a low number will minimize the risk of successful
brute force attacks to the SSH server. It will also limit the number of concurrent
unauthenticated connections While the recommended setting is 60 seconds (1 Minute), set
the number based on site policy.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that output LoginGraceTime is between 1 and 60
seconds or 1m:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep logingracetime
logingracetime 60
# grep -Ei '^\s*LoginGraceTime\s+(0|6[1-9]|[7-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-9][0-

9]+|[^1]m)' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
LoginGraceTime 60
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Default Value:
LoginGraceTime 120
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

426 | P a g e
5.2.15 Ensure SSH warning banner is configured (Automated)
Description:
The Banner parameter specifies a file whose contents must be sent to the remote user
before authentication is permitted. By default, no banner is displayed.
Rationale:
Banners are used to warn connecting users of the particular site's policy regarding
connection. Presenting a warning message prior to the normal user login may assist the
prosecution of trespassers on the computer system.
Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep banner
banner /etc/issue.net
Remediation:
Banner /etc/issue.net
427 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

428 | P a g e
5.2.16 Ensure SSH PAM is enabled (Automated)
Description:
UsePAM Enables the Pluggable Authentication Module interface. If set to “yes” this will
enable PAM authentication using ChallengeResponseAuthentication and
PasswordAuthentication in addition to PAM account and session module processing for all
authentication types
Rationale:
When usePAM is set to yes, PAM runs through account and session types properly. This is
important if you want to restrict access to services based off of IP, time or other factors of
the account. Additionally, you can make sure users inherit certain environment variables
on login or disallow access to the server
Impact:
If UsePAM is enabled, you will not be able to run sshd(8) as a non-root user.
Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep -i usepam
usepam yes
# grep -Ei '^\s*UsePAM\s+no' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
UsePAM yes
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Default Value:
usePAM yes
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

430 | P a g e
5.2.17 Ensure SSH AllowTcpForwarding is disabled (Automated)
Description:
SSH port forwarding is a mechanism in SSH for tunneling application ports from the client
to the server, or servers to clients. It can be used for adding encryption to legacy
applications, going through firewalls, and some system administrators and IT professionals
use it for opening backdoors into the internal network from their home machines
Rationale:
Leaving port forwarding enabled can expose the organization to security risks and back-
doors.
SSH connections are protected with strong encryption. This makes their contents invisible
to most deployed network monitoring and traffic filtering solutions. This invisibility carries
considerable risk potential if it is used for malicious purposes such as data exfiltration.
Cybercriminals or malware could exploit SSH to hide their unauthorized communications,
or to exfiltrate stolen data from the target network
Impact:
SSH tunnels are widely used in many corporate environments that employ mainframe
systems as their application backends. In those environments the applications themselves
may have very limited native support for security. By utilizing tunneling, compliance with
SOX, HIPAA, PCI-DSS, and other standards can be achieved without having to modify the
applications.
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Audit:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep -i allowtcpforwarding
allowtcpforwarding no
# grep -Ei '^\s*AllowTcpForwarding\s+yes' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
AllowTcpForwarding no
Default Value:
AllowTcpForwarding yes
References:
1. https://www.ssh.com/ssh/tunneling/example
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

v7 Running ● ●
432 | P a g e
5.2.18 Ensure SSH MaxStartups is configured (Automated)
Description:
The MaxStartups parameter specifies the maximum number of concurrent unauthenticated

connections to the SSH daemon.
Rationale:
To protect a system from denial of service due to a large number of pending authentication
connection attempts, use the rate limiting function of MaxStartups to protect availability of
sshd logins and prevent overwhelming the daemon.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that output MaxStartups is 10:30:60 or more
restrictive:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep -i maxstartups
maxstartups 10:30:60
# grep -Ei '^\s*maxstartups\s+(((1[1-9]|[1-9][0-9][0-9]+):([0-9]+):([0-

9]+))|(([0-9]+):(3[1-9]|[4-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-9][0-9]+):([0-9]+))|(([0-9]+):([0-
9]+):(6[1-9]|[7-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-9][0-9]+)))' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Remediation:
maxstartups 10:30:60
Default Value:
MaxStartups 10:30:100
433 | P a g e
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

434 | P a g e
5.2.19 Ensure SSH MaxSessions is set to 4 or less (Automated)
Description:
The MaxSessions parameter specifies the maximum number of open sessions permitted
from a given connection.
Rationale:
To protect a system from denial of service due to a large number of concurrent sessions,
use the rate limiting function of MaxSessions to protect availability of sshd logins and
prevent overwhelming the daemon.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that output MaxSessions is 10 or less:

/etc/hosts | awk '{print $1}')" | grep -i maxsessions
maxsessions 10
grep -Ei '^\s*MaxSessions\s+(1[1-9]|[2-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-9][0-9]+)'

Remediation:
MaxSessions 10
Default Value:
MaxSessions 10
435 | P a g e
References:
1. SSHD_CONFIG(5)
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

436 | P a g e
5.2.20 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is not over-ridden (Automated)
Description:
System-wide Crypto policy can be over-ridden or opted out of for openSSH
Rationale:
Over-riding or opting out of the system-wide crypto policy could allow for the use of less
secure Ciphers, MACs, KexAlgoritms and GSSAPIKexAlgorithsm
Audit:
# grep -i '^\s*CRYPTO_POLICY=' /etc/sysconfig/sshd
No output should be returned
Remediation:
# sed -ri "s/^\s*(CRYPTO_POLICY\s*=.*)$/# \1/" /etc/sysconfig/sshd

# systemctl reload sshd
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version


v7
● ●
437 | P a g e
5.3 Configure authselect
Authselect is a utility that simplifies the configuration of user authentication on a CentOS
Linux host. Authselect offers two ready-made profiles that can be universally used with all
modern identity management systems
Authselect makes testing and troubleshooting easy because it only modifies files in these
directories:
 /etc/nsswitch.conf
 /etc/pam.d/* files
 /etc/dconf/db/distro.d/* files
Notes:
 Do not use authselect if your host is part of CentOS Linux Identity Management
or Active Directory. The ipa-client-install command, called when joining your host
to a CentOS Identity Management domain, takes full care of configuring
authentication on your host. Similarly the realm join command, called when joining
your host to an Active Directory domain, takes full care of configuring
authentication on your host.
 You can create and deploy a custom profile by customizing one of the default
profiles, the sssd, winbind, or the nis profile. This is particularly useful if Modifying a
ready-made authselect profile is not enough for your needs. When you deploy a
custom profile, the profile is applied to every user logging into the given host. This
would be the recommended method, so that the existing profiles can remain
unmodified.
Example of creating a custom authselect profile called custom-profile
# authselect create-profile custom-profile -b sssd --symlink-meta
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5.3.1 Create custom authselect profile (Automated)
Description:
A custom profile can be created by copying and customizing one of the default profiles. The
default profiles include: sssd, winbind, or the nis.
Rationale:
A custom profile is required to customize many of the pam options
Audit:
# authselect current | grep "Profile ID: custom"
Profile ID: custom/<custom profile name>
Verify that the custom profile follows local site policy
Remediation:
Run the following command to create a custom authselect profile:
# authselect create-profile <custom-profile name> -b <default profile to

copy>
Example:
# authselect create-profile custom-profile -b sssd --symlink-meta
439 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

440 | P a g e
5.3.2 Select authselect profile (Automated)
Description:
You can select a profile for the authselect utility for a specific host. The profile will be
applied to every user logging into the host.
You can create and deploy a custom profile by customizing one of the default profiles, the
sssd, winbind, or the nis profile.
Rationale:
When you deploy a profile, the profile is applied to every user logging into the given host
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the current custom authselect profile follows
local site policy:
# authselect current
Profile ID: <custom-profile name>

Enabled features:
- with-sudo
- with-faillock
- without-nullok
Remediation:
Run the following command to select a custom authselect profile
# authselect select custom/<CUSTOM PROFILE NAME> {with-<OPTIONS>}
Example:
# authselect select custom/custom-profile with-sudo with-faillock without-

nullok
441 | P a g e
References:
1. Using authselect on a Red Hat Enterprise Linux host
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

442 | P a g e
5.3.3 Ensure authselect includes with-faillock (Automated)
Description:
The pam_faillock.so module maintains a list of failed authentication attempts per user
during a specified interval and locks the account in case there were more than deny
consecutive failed authentications. It stores the failure records into per-user files in the
tally directory
Rationale:
Locking out user IDs after n unsuccessful consecutive login attempts mitigates brute force
password attacks against your systems.
Audit:
Run the following commands to verify that faillock is enabled
# grep pam_faillock.so /etc/authselect/password-auth /etc/authselect/system-

auth
/etc/authselect/password-auth:auth required
pam_faillock.so preauth silent
/etc/authselect/password-auth:auth required
pam_faillock.so authfail
/etc/authselect/password-auth:account required
pam_faillock.so
/etc/authselect/system-auth:auth required
pam_faillock.so preauth silent
/etc/authselect/system-auth:auth required
pam_faillock.so authfail
/etc/authselect/system-auth:account required
pam_faillock.so
443 | P a g e
Remediation:
Run the following command to include the with-faillock option
# authselect select <PROFILE NAME> with-faillock
Example:
# authselect select custom/custom-profile with-sudo with-faillock without-

nullok
References:
1. faillock(8) - Linux man page
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
16.7 Establish Process for Revoking Access

Establish and follow an automated process for revoking system access by disabling
v7 accounts immediately upon termination or change of responsibilities of an employee or ● ●
contractor . Disabling these accounts, instead of deleting accounts, allows preservation
of audit trails.
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5.4 Configure PAM
PAM (Pluggable Authentication Modules) is a service that implements modular
authentication modules on UNIX systems. PAM is implemented as a set of shared objects
that are loaded and executed when a program needs to authenticate a user. Files for PAM
are typically located in the /etc/pam.d directory. PAM must be carefully configured to
secure system authentication. While this section covers some of PAM, please consult other
PAM resources to fully understand the configuration capabilities.
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5.4.1 Ensure password creation requirements are configured
(Automated)
Description:
The pam_pwquality.so module checks the strength of passwords. It performs checks such
as making sure a password is not a dictionary word, it is a certain length, contains a mix of
characters (e.g. alphabet, numeric, other) and more. The following are definitions of the
pam_pwquality.so options.
 try_first_pass - retrieve the password from a previous stacked PAM module. If

not available, then prompt the user for a password.
 retry=3 - Allow 3 tries before sending back a failure.
 minlen=14 - password must be 14 characters or more
** Either of the following can be used to enforce complex passwords:**
 minclass=4 - provide at least four classes of characters for the new password
OR
 dcredit=-1 - provide at least one digit
 ucredit=-1 - provide at least one uppercase character
 ocredit=-1 - provide at least one special character
 lcredit=-1 - provide at least one lowercase character
The settings shown above are one possible policy. Alter these values to conform to your
own organization's password policies
Rationale:
Strong passwords protect systems from being hacked through brute force methods.
446 | P a g e
Audit:
Verify password creation requirements conform to organization policy:

Run the following command and verify that retry conforms to organization policy.
# grep pam_pwquality.so /etc/pam.d/system-auth /etc/pam.d/password-auth
/etc/pam.d/system-auth:password requisite pam_pwquality.so try_first_pass

local_users_only enforce-for-root retry=3
/etc/pam.d/password-auth:password requisite pam_pwquality.so try_first_pass
local_users_only enforce-for-root retry=3
Run the following commands and verify password length requirements conform to
organization policy.
# grep ^minlen /etc/security/pwquality.conf
Verify minlen is 14 or more

Run one of the following commands and verify that password complexity conforms to
organization policy.
# grep ^minclass /etc/security/pwquality.conf

OR
# grep -E "^\s*\Scredit\s*=" /etc/security/pwquality.conf
447 | P a g e
Remediation:
Edit the file /etc/security/pwquality.conf and add or modify the following line for
password length to conform to site policy
minlen = 14
Edit the file /etc/security/pwquality.conf and add or modify the following line for
password complexity to conform to site policy
minclass = 4
OR
dcredit = -1
ucredit = -1
ocredit = -1
lcredit = -1
Run the following to update the system-auth and password-auth files
CP=$(authselect current | awk 'NR == 1 {print $3}' | grep custom/)

for FN in system-auth password-auth; do
[[ -n $CP ]] && PTF=/etc/authselect/$CP/$FN || PTF=/etc/authselect/$FN
[[ -z $(grep -E
'^\s*password\s+requisite\s+pam_pwquality.so\s+.*enforce-for-root\s*.*$'
$PTF) ]] && sed -ri
's/^\s*(password\s+requisite\s+pam_pwquality.so\s+)(.*)$/\1\2 enforce-for-
root/' $PTF
[[ -n $(grep -E
'^\s*password\s+requisite\s+pam_pwquality.so\s+.*\s+retry=\S+\s*.*$' $PTF) ]]
&& sed -ri '/pwquality/s/retry=\S+/retry=3/' $PTF || sed -ri
's/^\s*(password\s+requisite\s+pam_pwquality.so\s+)(.*)$/\1\2 retry=3/' $PTF
done
authselect apply-changes
all default authselect profiles have pam_pwquality enabled with the expectation that
options will be specified in pwquality.conf
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
5.2 Use Unique Passwords

Use unique passwords for all enterprise assets. Best practice implementation
v8
includes, at a minimum, an 8-character password for accounts using MFA and a 14-
● ● ●
character password for accounts not using MFA.

v7 Where multi-factor authentication is not supported (such as local administrator, ● ●
root, or service accounts), accounts will use passwords that are unique to that system.
449 | P a g e
5.4.2 Ensure lockout for failed password attempts is configured
(Automated)
Description:
Lock out users after n unsuccessful consecutive login attempts.
 deny= - Number of attempts before the account is locked

 unlock_time= - Time in seconds before the account is unlocked
Set the lockout number and unlock time to follow local site policy.
Rationale:
Locking out user IDs after n unsuccessful consecutive login attempts mitigates brute force
password attacks against your systems.
Audit:
Verify password lockouts are configured. These settings are commonly configured with the
pam_tally2.so and pam_failock.so modules found in /etc/pam.d/common-auth or
/etc/pam.d/system-auth and /etc/pam.d/password-auth . Examples:
Run the following command are review the output to ensure that it follow local site policy.
deny should be no greater that 5 and unlock_time should be no less than 900 seconds
# grep -E '^\s*auth\s+required\s+pam_faillock.so\s+' /etc/pam.d/password-auth

/etc/pam.d/system-auth
Output should look similar to:
/etc/pam.d/password-auth:auth required pam_faillock.so preauth silent

deny=5 unlock_time=900
/etc/pam.d/password-auth:auth required pam_faillock.so authfail
/etc/pam.d/system-auth:auth required pam_faillock.so preauth silent
/etc/pam.d/system-auth:auth required pam_faillock.so authfail
450 | P a g e
Remediation:
Set password lockouts and unlock times to conform to site policy

Run the following to update the system-auth and password-auth files. This script will
update/add the deny=5 and unlock_time=900 options.
This script should be modified as needed to follow local site policy.

[[ -n $CP ]] && PTF=/etc/authselect/$CP/$FN || PTF=/etc/authselect/$FN
[[ -n $(grep -E
'^\s*auth\s+required\s+pam_faillock.so\s+.*deny=\S+\s*.*$' $PTF) ]] && sed -
ri '/pam_faillock.so/s/deny=\S+/deny=5/g' $PTF || sed -ri
's/^\^\s*(auth\s+required\s+pam_faillock\.so\s+)(.*[^{}])(\{.*\}|)$/\1\2
deny=5 \3/' $PTF
[[ -n $(grep -E
'^\s*auth\s+required\s+pam_faillock.so\s+.*unlock_time=\S+\s*.*$' $PTF) ]] &&
sed -ri '/pam_faillock.so/s/unlock_time=\S+/unlock_time=900/g' $PTF || sed -
ri 's/^\s*(auth\s+required\s+pam_faillock\.so\s+)(.*[^{}])(\{.*\}|)$/\1\2
unlock_time=900 \3/' $PTF
done
Additional module options may be set, recommendation only covers those listed here.
If a user has been locked out because they have reached the maximum consecutive failure
count defined by deny= in the pam_faillock.so module, the user can be unlocked by
issuing the command faillock -u --reset. This command sets the failed count to 0,
effectively unlocking the user.
Use of the "audit" keyword may log credentials in the case of user error during
authentication. This risk should be evaluated in the context of the site policies of your
organization.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
16.7 Establish Process for Revoking Access

Establish and follow an automated process for revoking system access by disabling
v7 accounts immediately upon termination or change of responsibilities of an employee or ● ●
contractor . Disabling these accounts, instead of deleting accounts, allows preservation
of audit trails.
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5.4.3 Ensure password reuse is limited (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/security/opasswd file stores the users' old passwords and can be checked to
ensure that users are not recycling recent passwords.
 remember=<5> - Number of old passwords to remember
Rationale:
Forcing users not to reuse their past 5 passwords make it less likely that an attacker will be
able to guess the password.
Note: These change only apply to accounts configured on the local system.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that the remembered password history is 5 or
more.
# grep -P
'^\h*password\h+(requisite|sufficient)\h+(pam_pwhistory\.so|pam_unix\.so)\h+(
[^#\n\r]+\h+)?remember=([5-9]|[1-9][0-9]+)\h*(\h+.*)?$' /etc/pam.d/system-
auth
The output should be similar to:
password requisite pam_pwhistory.so try_first_pass local_users_only

enforce-for-root retry=3 remember=5
password sufficient pam_unix.so sha512 shadow try_first_pass
use_authtok remember=5
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Remediation:
Set remembered password history to conform to site policy.

Run the following script to add or modify the pam_pwhistory.so and pam_unix.so lines to
include the remember option:
#!/bin/bash
if authselect current | awk 'NR == 1 {print $3}' | grep -q custom/; then

PTF=/etc/authselect/"$(authselect current | awk 'NR == 1 {print $3}' |
grep custom/)"/system-auth
else
PTF=/etc/authselect/system-auth
fi
if grep -Eq
'^\s*password\s+(sufficient\s+pam_unix|requi(red|site)\s+pam_pwhistory).so\s+
([^#]+\s+)*remember=\S+\s*.*$' $PTF; then
sed -ri
's/^\s*(password\s+(requisite|sufficient)\s+(pam_pwhistory\.so|pam_unix\.so)\
s+)(.*)(remember=\S+\s*)(.*)$/\1\4 remember=5 \6/' $PTF
else
sed -ri
's/^\s*(password\s+(requisite|sufficient)\s+(pam_pwhistory\.so|pam_unix\.so)\
s+)(.*)$/\1\4 remember=5/' $PTF
fi
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

454 | P a g e
5.4.4 Ensure password hashing algorithm is SHA-512 (Automated)
Description:
The commands below change password encryption from md5 to sha512 (a much stronger
hashing algorithm). All existing accounts will need to perform a password change to
upgrade the stored hashes to the new algorithm.
Rationale:
The SHA-512 algorithm provides much stronger hashing than MD5, thus providing
additional protection to the system by increasing the level of effort for an attacker to
successfully determine passwords.
Note that these changes only apply to accounts configured on the local system.
Audit:
Verify password hashing algorithm is sha512. This setting is configured with the
pam_unix.so sha512 option found in /etc/pam.d/system-auth and /etc/pam.d/password-
auth
# grep -E '^\s*password\s+sufficient\s+pam_unix.so\s+.*sha512\s*.*$'
/etc/pam.d/password-auth /etc/pam.d/system-auth
The output should be similar to:
/etc/pam.d/password-auth:password sufficient pam_unix.so sha512

shadow try_first_pass use_authtok
/etc/pam.d/system-auth:password sufficient pam_unix.so sha512
shadow try_first_pass use_authtok remember=5
455 | P a g e
Remediation:
Set password hashing algorithm to sha512.

Run the following script to dd or modify the pam_unix.so lines in the password-auth and
system-auth files to include the sha512 option:

[[ -z $(grep -E
'^\s*password\s+sufficient\s+pam_unix.so\s+.*sha512\s*.*$' $PTF) ]] && sed -
ri 's/^\s*(password\s+sufficient\s+pam_unix.so\s+)(.*)$/\1\2 sha512/' $PTF
done
If it is determined that the password algorithm being used is not SHA-512, once it is
changed, it is recommended that all user ID's be immediately expired and forced to change
their passwords on next login. To accomplish that, the following commands can be used.
Any system accounts that need to be expired should be carefully done separately by the
system administrator to prevent any potential problems.
# awk -F: '( $3<'"$(awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}' /etc/login.defs)"' && $1 !=

"nfsnobody" ) { print $1 }' /etc/passwd | xargs -n 1 chage -d 0
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
3.11 Encrypt Sensitive Data at Rest

Encrypt sensitive data at rest on servers, applications, and databases containing
sensitive data. Storage-layer encryption, also known as server-side encryption, meets
v8
the minimum requirement of this Safeguard. Additional encryption methods may
● ●
include application-layer encryption, also known as client-side encryption, where
access to the data storage device(s) does not permit access to the plain-text data.
16.4 Encrypt or Hash all Authentication Credentials

v7
Encrypt or hash with a salt all authentication credentials when stored.
● ●
456 | P a g e
5.5 User Accounts and Environment
This section provides guidance on setting up secure defaults for system and user accounts
and their environment.
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5.5.1 Set Shadow Password Suite Parameters
While a majority of the password control parameters have been moved to PAM, some
parameters are still available through the shadow password suite. Any changes made to
/etc/login.defs will only be applied if the usermod command is used. If user IDs are
added a different way, use the chage command to effect changes to individual user IDs.
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5.5.1.1 Ensure password expiration is 365 days or less (Automated)
Description:
The PASS_MAX_DAYS parameter in /etc/login.defs allows an administrator to force

passwords to expire once they reach a defined age. It is recommended that the
PASS_MAX_DAYS parameter be set to less than or equal to 365 days.
Rationale:
The window of opportunity for an attacker to leverage compromised credentials or

successfully compromise credentials via an online brute force attack is limited by the age of
the password. Therefore, reducing the maximum age of a password also reduces an
attacker's window of opportunity.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify PASS_MAX_DAYS conforms to site policy (no more
than 365 days):
# grep PASS_MAX_DAYS /etc/login.defs
PASS_MAX_DAYS 365
Run the following command and Review list of users and PASS_MAX_DAYS to verify that all
users' PASS_MAX_DAYS conforms to site policy (no more than 365 days):
# grep -E '^[^:]+:[^!*]' /etc/shadow | cut -d: -f1,5
<user>:<PASS_MAX_DAYS>
Remediation:
Set the PASS_MAX_DAYS parameter to conform to site policy in /etc/login.defs :
PASS_MAX_DAYS 365
Modify user parameters for all users with a password set to match:
# chage --maxdays 365 <user>
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You can also check this setting in /etc/shadow directly. The 5th field should be 365 or less
for all users with a password.
Note: A value of -1 will disable password expiration. Additionally the password expiration
must be greater than the minimum days between password changes or users will be unable
to change their password.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

460 | P a g e
5.5.1.2 Ensure minimum days between password changes is 7 or more
(Automated)
Description:
The PASS_MIN_DAYS parameter in /etc/login.defs allows an administrator to prevent

users from changing their password until a minimum number of days have passed since the
last time the user changed their password. It is recommended that PASS_MIN_DAYS
parameter be set to 7 or more days.
Rationale:
By restricting the frequency of password changes, an administrator can prevent users from
repeatedly changing their password in an attempt to circumvent password reuse controls.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify PASS_MIN_DAYS conforms to site policy (no less than
7 days):
# grep ^\s*PASS_MIN_DAYS /etc/login.defs
PASS_MIN_DAYS 7
Run the following command and Review list of users and PASS_MIN_DAYS to Verify that all
users' PASS_MIN_DAYS conform s to site policy (no less than 7 days):
# grep -E ^[^:]+:[^\!*] /etc/shadow | cut -d: -f1,4
<user>:<PASS_MIN_DAYS>
461 | P a g e
Remediation:
Set the PASS_MIN_DAYS parameter to 7 in /etc/login.defs :
PASS_MIN_DAYS 7
# chage --mindays 7 <user>
You can also check this setting in /etc/shadow directly. The 4th field should be 7 or more
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

462 | P a g e
5.5.1.3 Ensure password expiration warning days is 7 or more
(Automated)
Description:
The PASS_WARN_AGE parameter in /etc/login.defs allows an administrator to notify users

that their password will expire in a defined number of days. It is recommended that the
PASS_WARN_AGE parameter be set to 7 or more days.
Rationale:
Providing an advance warning that a password will be expiring gives users time to think of
a secure password. Users caught unaware may choose a simple password or write it down
where it may be discovered.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify PASS_WARN_AGE conforms to site policy (No less than
7 days):
# grep PASS_WARN_AGE /etc/login.defs
PASS_WARN_AGE 7
Verify all users with a password have their number of days of warning before password
expires set to 7 or more:
Run the following command and Review list of users and PASS_WARN_AGE to verify that all
users' PASS_WARN_AGE conforms to site policy (No less than 7 days):
<user>:<PASS_WARN_AGE>
463 | P a g e
Remediation:
Set the PASS_WARN_AGE parameter to 7 in /etc/login.defs :
PASS_WARN_AGE 7
# chage --warndays 7 <user>
You can also check this setting in /etc/shadow directly. The 6th field should be 7 or more
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

464 | P a g e
5.5.1.4 Ensure inactive password lock is 30 days or less (Automated)
Description:
User accounts that have been inactive for over a given period of time can be automatically
disabled. It is recommended that accounts that are inactive for 30 days after password
expiration be disabled.
Rationale:
Inactive accounts pose a threat to system security since the users are not logging in to
notice failed login attempts or other anomalies.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify INACTIVE conforms to sire policy (no more than 30
days):
# useradd -D | grep INACTIVE
INACTIVE=30
Verify all users with a password have Password inactive no more than 30 days after
password expires:
Run the following command and Review list of users and INACTIVE to verify that all users'
INACTIVE conforms to site policy (no more than 30 days):
<user>:<INACTIVE>
Remediation:
Run the following command to set the default password inactivity period to 30 days:
# useradd -D -f 30
# chage --inactive 30 <user>
465 | P a g e
You can also check this setting in /etc/shadow directly. The 7th field should be 30 or less
Note: A value of -1 would disable this setting.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

466 | P a g e
5.5.1.5 Ensure all users last password change date is in the past
(Automated)
Description:
All users should have a password change date in the past.
Rationale:
If a user’s recorded password change date is in the future then they could bypass any set
password expiration.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify nothing is returned
# for usr in $(cut -d: -f1 /etc/shadow); do [[ $(chage --list $usr | grep
'^Last password change' | cut -d: -f2) > $(date) ]] && echo "$usr :$(chage --
list $usr | grep '^Last password change' | cut -d: -f2)"; done
Remediation:
Investigate any users with a password change date in the future and correct them. Locking
the account, expiring the password, or resetting the password manually may be
appropriate.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

467 | P a g e
5.5.2 Ensure system accounts are secured (Automated)
Description:
There are a number of accounts provided with most distributions that are used to manage
applications and are not intended to provide an interactive shell.
Rationale:
It is important to make sure that accounts that are not being used by regular users are
prevented from being used to provide an interactive shell. By default, most distributions
set the password field for these accounts to an invalid string, but it is also recommended
that the shell field in the password file be set to the nologin shell. This prevents the
account from potentially being used to run any commands.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify no results are returned:
awk -F: '($1!="root" && $1!="sync" && $1!="shutdown" && $1!="halt" &&
$1!~/^\+/ && $3<'"$(awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}' /etc/login.defs)"' &&
$7!="'"$(which nologin)"'" && $7!="/bin/false") {print}' /etc/passwd
awk -F: '($1!="root" && $1!~/^\+/ && $3<'"$(awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}'

/etc/login.defs)"') {print $1}' /etc/passwd | xargs -I '{}' passwd -S '{}' |
awk '($2!="L" && $2!="LK") {print $1}'
468 | P a g e
Remediation:
Run the commands appropriate for your distribution:

Set the shell for any accounts returned by the audit to nologin:
# usermod -s $(which nologin) <user>
Lock any non root accounts returned by the audit:
# usermod -L <user>
The following command will set all system accounts to a non login shell:
awk -F: '($1!="root" && $1!="sync" && $1!="shutdown" && $1!="halt" &&
$1!~/^\+/ && $3<'"$(awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}' /etc/login.defs)"' &&
$7!="'"$(which nologin)"'" && $7!="/bin/false") {print $1}' /etc/passwd |
while read user do usermod -s $(which nologin) $user done
The following command will automatically lock not root system accounts:
awk -F: '($1!="root" && $1!~/^\+/ && $3<'"$(awk '/^\s*UID_MIN/{print $2}'

/etc/login.defs)"') {print $1}' /etc/passwd | xargs -I '{}' passwd -S '{}' |
awk '($2!="L" && $2!="LK") {print $1}' | while read user do usermod -L $user
done
The root, sync, shutdown, and halt users are exempted from requiring a non-login shell.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

469 | P a g e
5.5.3 Ensure default user shell timeout is 900 seconds or less
(Automated)
Description:
TMOUT is an environmental setting that determines the timeout of a shell in seconds.
 TMOUT=n - Sets the shell timeout to n seconds. A setting of TMOUT=0 disables

timeout.
 readonly TMOUT- Sets the TMOUT environmental variable as readonly, preventing
unwanted modification during run-time.
 export TMOUT - exports the TMOUT variable
System Wide Shell Configuration Files:
 /etc/profile - used to set system wide environmental variables on users shells.

The variables are sometimes the same ones that are in the .bash_profile, however
this file is used to set an initial PATH or PS1 for all shell users of the system. is only
executed for interactive login shells, or shells executed with the --login
parameter.
 /etc/profile.d - /etc/profile will execute the scripts within
/etc/profile.d/*.sh. It is recommended to place your configuration in a shell
script within /etc/profile.d to set your own system wide environmental variables.
 /etc/bashrc - System wide version of .bashrc. In Fedora derived distributions,
etc/bashrc also invokes /etc/profile.d/*.sh if non-login shell, but redirects output
to /dev/null if non-interactive. Is only executed for interactive shells or if
BASH_ENV is set to /etc/bashrc.
Rationale:
Setting a timeout value reduces the window of opportunity for unauthorized user access to
another user's shell session that has been left unattended. It also ends the inactive session
and releases the resources associated with that session.
470 | P a g e
Audit:
Run the following script to verify that TMOUT is configured to: include a timeout of no more
than 900 seconds, to be readonly, to be exported, and is not being changed to a longer
timeout.
#!/bin/bash
output1="" output2=""
[ -f /etc/bashrc ] && BRC="/etc/bashrc"
for f in "$BRC" /etc/profile /etc/profile.d/*.sh ; do
grep -Pq '^\s*([^#]+\s+)?TMOUT=(900|[1-8][0-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-9]|[1-9])\b'
"$f" && grep -Pq '^\s*([^#]+;\s*)?readonly\s+TMOUT(\s+|\s*;|\s*$|=(900|[1-
8][0-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-9]|[1-9]))\b' "$f" && grep -Pq
'^\s*([^#]+;\s*)?export\s+TMOUT(\s+|\s*;|\s*$|=(900|[1-8][0-9][0-9]|[1-9][0-
9]|[1-9]))\b' "$f" && output1="$f"
done
grep -Pq '^\s*([^#]+\s+)?TMOUT=(9[0-9][1-9]|9[1-9][0-9]|0+|[1-9]\d{3,})\b'
/etc/profile /etc/profile.d/*.sh "$BRC" && output2=$(grep -Ps
'^\s*([^#]+\s+)?TMOUT=(9[0-9][1-9]|9[1-9][0-9]|0+|[1-9]\d{3,})\b'
/etc/profile /etc/profile.d/*.sh $BRC)
if [ -n "$output1" ] && [ -z "$output2" ]; then
echo -e "\nPASSED\n\nTMOUT is configured in: \"$output1\"\n"
else
[ -z "$output1" ] && echo -e "\nFAILED\n\nTMOUT is not configured\n"
[ -n "$output2" ] && echo -e "\nFAILED\n\nTMOUT is incorrectly configured
in: \"$output2\"\n"
fi
Remediation:
Review /etc/bashrc, /etc/profile, and all files ending in *.sh in the /etc/profile.d/
directory and remove or edit all TMOUT=_n_ entries to follow local site policy. TMOUT should
not exceed 900 or be equal to 0.
Configure TMOUT in one of the following files:
 A file in the /etc/profile.d/ directory ending in .sh

 /etc/profile
 /etc/bashrc
TMOUT configuration examples:

As multiple lines:
TMOUT=900
readonly TMOUT
export TMOUT
As a single line:
readonly TMOUT=900 ; export TMOUT
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The audit and remediation in this recommendation apply to bash and shell. If other shells
are supported on the system, it is recommended that their configuration files also are
checked. Other methods of setting a timeout exist for other shells not covered here.
Ensure that the timeout conforms to your local policy.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version
4.3 Configure Automatic Session Locking on Enterprise

Assets
v8 Configure automatic session locking on enterprise assets after a defined period of ● ● ●
inactivity. For general purpose operating systems, the period must not exceed 15
minutes. For mobile end-user devices, the period must not exceed 2 minutes.
16.11 Lock Workstation Sessions After Inactivity

v7
Automatically lock workstation sessions after a standard period of inactivity.
● ● ●
472 | P a g e
5.5.4 Ensure default group for the root account is GID 0 (Automated)
Description:
The usermod command can be used to specify which group the root user belongs to. This
affects permissions of files that are created by the root user.
Rationale:
Using GID 0 for the root account helps prevent root -owned files from accidentally
becoming accessible to non-privileged users.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify the result is 0 :
# grep "^root:" /etc/passwd | cut -f4 -d:

0
Remediation:
Run the following command to set the root user default group to GID 0 :
# usermod -g 0 root
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

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5.5.5 Ensure default user umask is 027 or more restrictive (Automated)
Description:
The user file-creation mode mask (umask) is use to determine the file permission for newly
created directories and files. In Linux, the default permissions for any newly created
directory is 0777 (rwxrwxrwx), and for any newly created file it is 0666 (rw-rw-rw-). The
umask modifies the default Linux permissions by restricting (masking) these permissions.
The umask is not simply subtracted, but is processed bitwise. Bits set in the umask are
cleared in the resulting file mode.
umask can be set with either octal or Symbolic values:
 Octal (Numeric) Value - Represented by either three or four digits. ie umask 0027 or
umask 027. If a four digit umask is used, the first digit is ignored. The remaining
three digits effect the resulting permissions for user, group, and world/other
respectively.
 Symbolic Value - Represented by a comma separated list for User u, group g, and
world/other o. The permissions listed are not masked by umask. ie a umask set by
umask u=rwx,g=rx,o= is the Symbolic equivalent of the Octal umask 027. This
umask would set a newly created directory with file mode drwxr-x--- and a newly
created file with file mode rw-r-----.
The default umask can be set to use the pam_umask module or in a System Wide Shell
Configuration File. The user creating the directories or files has the discretion of
changing the permissions via the chmod command, or choosing a different default umask by
adding the umask command into a User Shell Configuration File, ( .bash_profile or
.bashrc), in their home directory.
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Setting the default umask:
 pam_umask module:
o will set the umask according to the system default in /etc/login.defs and
user settings, solving the problem of different umask settings with different
shells, display managers, remote sessions etc.
o umask=<mask> value in the /etc/login.defs file is interpreted as Octal
o Setting USERGROUPS_ENAB to yes in /etc/login.defs (default):
 will enable setting of the umask group bits to be the same as owner
bits. (examples: 022 -> 002, 077 -> 007) for non-root users, if the uid
is the same as gid, and username is the same as the <primary group
name>
 userdel will remove the user's group if it contains no more members,
and useradd will create by default a group with the name of the user
 System Wide Shell Configuration File:
o /etc/profile - used to set system wide environmental variables on users
shells. The variables are sometimes the same ones that are in the
.bash_profile, however this file is used to set an initial PATH or PS1 for all
shell users of the system. is only executed for interactive login shells, or
shells executed with the --login parameter.
o /etc/profile.d - /etc/profile will execute the scripts within
/etc/profile.d/*.sh. It is recommended to place your configuration in a
shell script within /etc/profile.d to set your own system wide
environmental variables.
o /etc/bashrc - System wide version of .bashrc. In Fedora derived
distributions, etc/bashrc also invokes /etc/profile.d/*.sh if non-login shell,
but redirects output to /dev/null if non-interactive. Is only executed for
interactive shells or if BASH_ENV is set to /etc/bashrc.
User Shell Configuration Files:
 ~/.bash_profile - Is executed to configure your shell before the initial command

prompt. Is only read by login shells.
 ~/.bashrc - Is executed for interactive shells. only read by a shell that's both
interactive and non-login
Rationale:
Setting a very secure default value for umask ensures that users make a conscious choice
about their file permissions. A default umask setting of 077 causes files and directories
created by users to not be readable by any other user on the system. A umask of 027 would
make files and directories readable by users in the same Unix group, while a umask of 022
would make files readable by every user on the system.
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Audit:
Run the following to verify:
 A default user umask is set to enforce a newly created directories' permissions to be

750 (drwxr-x---), and a newly created file's permissions be 640 (rw-r-----), or
more restrictive
 No less restrictive System Wide umask is set
Run the following script to verify that a default user umask is set enforcing a newly created
directories's permissions to be 750 (drwxr-x---), and a newly created file's permissions be
640 (rw-r-----), or more restrictive:
#!/bin/bash
passing=""
grep -Eiq '^\s*UMASK\s+(0[0-7][2-7]7|[0-7][2-7]7)\b' /etc/login.defs && grep
-Eqi '^\s*USERGROUPS_ENAB\s*"?no"?\b' /etc/login.defs && grep -Eq
'^\s*session\s+(optional|requisite|required)\s+pam_umask\.so\b'
/etc/pam.d/common-session && passing=true
grep -REiq '^\s*UMASK\s+\s*(0[0-7][2-7]7|[0-7][2-
7]7|u=(r?|w?|x?)(r?|w?|x?)(r?|w?|x?),g=(r?x?|x?r?),o=)\b' /etc/profile*
/etc/bashrc* && passing=true
[ "$passing" = true ] && echo "Default user umask is set"
Verify output is: "Default user umask is set"

Run the following to verify that no less restrictive system wide umask is set:
# grep -RPi '(^|^[^#]*)\s*umask\s+([0-7][0-7][01][0-7]\b|[0-7][0-7][0-7][0-

6]\b|[0-7][01][0-7]\b|[0-7][0-7][0-
6]\b|(u=[rwx]{0,3},)?(g=[rwx]{0,3},)?o=[rwx]+\b|(u=[rwx]{1,3},)?g=[^rx]{1,3}(
,o=[rwx]{0,3})?\b)' /etc/login.defs /etc/profile* /etc/bashrc*
No file should be returned
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Remediation:
Review /etc/bashrc, /etc/profile, and all files ending in *.sh in the /etc/profile.d/ directory
and remove or edit all umask entries to follow local site policy. Any remaining entries
should be: umask 027, umask u=rwx,g=rx,o= or more restrictive.
Configure umask in one of the following files:

 /etc/profile
 /etc/bashrc
Example:
# vi /etc/profile.d/set_umask.sh
umask 027
Run the following command and remove or modify the umask of any returned files:
# grep -RPi '(^|^[^#]*)\s*umask\s+([0-7][0-7][01][0-7]\b|[0-7][0-7][0-7][0-

6]\b|[0-7][01][0-7]\b|[0-7][0-7][0-
6]\b|(u=[rwx]{0,3},)?(g=[rwx]{0,3},)?o=[rwx]+\b|(u=[rwx]{1,3},)?g=[^rx]{1,3}(
,o=[rwx]{0,3})?\b)' /etc/login.defs /etc/profile* /etc/bashrc*
Follow one of the following methods to set the default user umask:
Edit /etc/login.defs and edit the UMASK and USERGROUPS_ENAB lines as follows:
UMASK 027
USERGROUPS_ENAB no
Edit the files /etc/pam.d/password-auth and /etc/pam.d/system-auth and add or edit the
following:
session optional pam_umask.so

OR Configure umask in one of the following files:

 /etc/profile
 /etc/bashrc
Example: /etc/profile.d/set_umask.sh
umask 027
Note: this method only applies to bash and shell. If other shells are supported on the
system, it is recommended that their configuration files also are checked.
477 | P a g e
Default Value:
UMASK 022
 Other methods of setting a default user umask exist

 If other methods are in use in your environment they should be audited
 The default user umask can be overridden with a user specific umask
 The user creating the directories or files has the discretion of changing the
permissions:
o Using the chmod command
o Setting a different default umask by adding the umask command into a User
Shell Configuration File, (.bashrc), in their home directory
o Manually changing the umask for the duration of a login session by running
the umask command
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

Data Protection
478 | P a g e
5.6 Ensure root login is restricted to system console (Manual)
Description:
The file /etc/securetty contains a list of valid terminals that may be logged in directly as
root.
Rationale:
Since the system console has special properties to handle emergency situations, it is
important to ensure that the console is in a physically secure location and that
unauthorized consoles have not been defined.
Audit:
# cat /etc/securetty
Remediation:
Remove entries for any consoles that are not in a physically secure location.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

479 | P a g e
5.7 Ensure access to the su command is restricted (Automated)
Description:
The su command allows a user to run a command or shell as another user. The program
has been superseded by sudo , which allows for more granular control over privileged
access. Normally, the su command can be executed by any user. By uncommenting the
pam_wheel.so statement in /etc/pam.d/su , the su command will only allow users in the
wheel group to execute su .
Rationale:
Restricting the use of su , and using sudo in its place, provides system administrators better
control of the escalation of user privileges to execute privileged commands. The sudo utility
also provides a better logging and audit mechanism, as it can log each command executed
via sudo , whereas su can only record that a user executed the su program.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify output includes matching line:
# grep pam_wheel.so /etc/pam.d/su

auth required pam_wheel.so use_uid
Run the following command and verify users in wheel group match site policy. If no users
are listed, only root will have access to su.
# grep wheel /etc/group

wheel:x:10:root,<user list>
480 | P a g e
Remediation:
Add the following line to the /etc/pam.d/su file:
auth required pam_wheel.so use_uid
Create a comma separated list of users in the wheel statement in the /etc/group file:
wheel:x:<GID>:root,<user list>
Example:
wheel:x:10:root,user1,user2,user3
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

481 | P a g e
6 System Maintenance
Recommendations in this section are intended as maintenance and are intended to be
checked on a frequent basis to ensure system stability. Many recommendations do not have
quick remediations and require investigation into the cause and best fix available and may
indicate an attempted breach of system security.
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6.1 System File Permissions
This section provides guidance on securing aspects of system files and directories.
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6.1.1 Audit system file permissions (Manual)
Description:
The RPM package manager has a number of useful options. One of these, the -V for RPM
option, can be used to verify that system packages are correctly installed. The -V option can
be used to verify a particular package or to verify all system packages. If no output is
returned, the package is installed correctly. The following table describes the meaning of
output from the verify option:
Code Meaning
S File size differs.
M File mode differs (includes permissions and file type).
5 The MD5 checksum differs.
D The major and minor version numbers differ on a device file.
L A mismatch occurs in a link.
U The file ownership differs.
G The file group owner differs.
T The file time (mtime) differs.
The rpm -qf command can be used to determine which package a particular file belongs to.
For example the following commands determines which package the /bin/bash file
belongs to:
# rpm -qf /bin/bash
bash-4.1.2-29.el6.x86_64
# dpkg -S /bin/bash
bash: /bin/bash
To verify the settings for the package that controls the /bin/bash file, run the following:
# rpm -V bash-4.1.2-29.el6.x86_64
.M....... /bin/bash
# dpkg --verify bash
??5?????? c /etc/bash.bashrc
Note that you can feed the output of the rpm -qf command to the rpm -V command:
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# rpm -V `rpm -qf /etc/passwd`
.M...... c /etc/passwd
S.5....T c /etc/printcap
Rationale:
It is important to confirm that packaged system files and directories are maintained with
the permissions they were intended to have from the OS vendor.
Audit:
Run the following command to review all installed packages. Note that this may be very
time consuming and may be best scheduled via the cron utility. It is recommended that the
output of this command be redirected to a file that can be reviewed later.
# rpm -Va --nomtime --nosize --nomd5 --nolinkto > <filename>
Remediation:
Correct any discrepancies found and rerun the audit until output is clean or risk is
mitigated or accepted.
References:
1. http://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-
US/Fedora_Draft_Documentation/0.1/html/RPM_Guide/index.html
Since packages and important files may change with new updates and releases, it is
recommended to verify everything, not just a finite list of files. This can be a time
consuming task and results may depend on site policy therefore it is not a scorable
benchmark item, but is provided for those interested in additional security measures.
Some of the recommendations of this benchmark alter the state of files audited by this
recommendation. The audit command will alert for all changes to a file permissions even if
the new state is more secure than the default.
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CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

486 | P a g e
6.1.2 Ensure permissions on /etc/passwd are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/passwd file contains user account information that is used by many system
utilities and therefore must be readable for these utilities to operate.
Rationale:
It is critical to ensure that the /etc/passwd file is protected from unauthorized write
access. Although it is protected by default, the file permissions could be changed either
inadvertently or through malicious actions.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify Uid and Gid are both 0/root and Access is 644 or
more restrictive:
# stat /etc/passwd
Remediation:
Run the following command to set permissions on /etc/passwd:
# chown root:root /etc/passwd

# chmod 644 /etc/passwd
Default Value:
487 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
488 | P a g e
6.1.3 Ensure permissions on /etc/passwd- are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/passwd- file contains backup user account information.
Rationale:
It is critical to ensure that the /etc/passwd- file is protected from unauthorized access.
Although it is protected by default, the file permissions could be changed either
Audit:
more restrictive:
# stat /etc/passwd-
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set owner, group, and permissions on /etc/passwd-:
# chown root:root /etc/passwd-

# chmod chmod u-x,go-wx /etc/passwd-
Default Value:
489 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
490 | P a g e
6.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/shadow are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/shadow file is used to store the information about user accounts that is critical to
the security of those accounts, such as the hashed password and other security
information.
Rationale:
If attackers can gain read access to the /etc/shadow file, they can easily run a password
cracking program against the hashed password to break it. Other security information that
is stored in the /etc/shadow file (such as expiration) could also be useful to subvert the
user accounts.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify Uid and Gid are 0/root , and Access is 0000 :
# stat /etc/shadow
Access: (0000/----------) Uid: ( 0/ root) Gid: ( 0/ root)
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set owner, group, and permissions on /etc/shadow:
# chown root:root /etc/shadow

# chmod 0000 /etc/shadow
Default Value:
491 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
492 | P a g e
6.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/shadow- are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/shadow- file is used to store backup information about user accounts that is
critical to the security of those accounts, such as the hashed password and other security
information.
Rationale:
It is critical to ensure that the /etc/shadow- file is protected from unauthorized access.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify Uid is 0/root, Gid is 0/root and Access is 0000 :
# stat /etc/shadow-
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set owner, group, and permissions on /etc/shadow- :
# chown root:root /etc/shadow-

# chmod 0000 /etc/shadow-
Default Value:
493 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
494 | P a g e
6.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/gshadow are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/gshadow file is used to store the information about groups that is critical to the
security of those accounts, such as the hashed password and other security information.
Rationale:
If attackers can gain read access to the /etc/gshadow file, they can easily run a password
cracking program against the hashed password to break it. Other security information that
is stored in the /etc/gshadow file (such as group administrators) could also be useful to
subvert the group.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify verify Uid is 0/root, Gid is 0/root and Access is
0000:
# stat /etc/gshadow
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set owner, group, and permissions on /etc/gshadow
# chown root:root /etc/gshadow

# chmod 0000 /etc/gshadow
Default Value:
495 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
496 | P a g e
6.1.7 Ensure permissions on /etc/gshadow- are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/gshadow- file is used to store backup information about groups that is critical to
the security of those accounts, such as the hashed password and other security
information.
Rationale:
It is critical to ensure that the /etc/gshadow- file is protected from unauthorized access.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify verify Uid is 0/root, Gid is 0/root or
<gid>/shadow, and Access is 0000:
# stat /etc/gshadow-
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set owner, group, and permissions on /etc/gshadow- :
# chown root:root /etc/gshadow-

# chmod 0000 /etc/gshadow-
Default Value:
497 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
498 | P a g e
6.1.8 Ensure permissions on /etc/group are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/group file contains a list of all the valid groups defined in the system. The
command below allows read/write access for root and read access for everyone else.
Rationale:
The /etc/group file needs to be protected from unauthorized changes by non-privileged

users, but needs to be readable as this information is used with many non-privileged
programs.
Audit:
more restrictive:
# stat /etc/group
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set owner, group, and permissions on /etc/group:
# chown root:root /etc/group

# chmod u-x,g-wx,o-wx /etc/group
Default Value:
499 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
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6.1.9 Ensure permissions on /etc/group- are configured (Automated)
Description:
The /etc/group- file contains a backup list of all the valid groups defined in the system.
Rationale:
It is critical to ensure that the /etc/group- file is protected from unauthorized access.
Audit:
more restrictive:
# stat /etc/group-
Remediation:
Run the following commands to set owner, group, and permissions on /etc/group-:
# chown root:root /etc/group-

# chmod u-x,go-wx /etc/group-
Default Value:
501 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

v7
● ●
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6.1.10 Ensure no world writable files exist (Automated)
Description:
Unix-based systems support variable settings to control access to files. World writable files
are the least secure. See the chmod(2) man page for more information.
Rationale:
Data in world-writable files can be modified and compromised by any user on the system.
World writable files may also indicate an incorrectly written script or program that could
potentially be the cause of a larger compromise to the system's integrity.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify no files are returned:
-type f -perm -0002
The command above only searches local filesystems, there may still be compromised items
on network mounted partitions. Additionally the --local option to df is not universal to all
versions, it can be omitted to search all filesystems on a system including network mounted
filesystems or the following command can be run manually for each partition:
# find <partition> -xdev -type f -perm -0002
Remediation:
Removing write access for the "other" category ( chmod o-w <filename> ) is advisable, but
always consult relevant vendor documentation to avoid breaking any application
dependencies on a given file.
503 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

Data Protection
504 | P a g e
6.1.11 Ensure no unowned files or directories exist (Automated)
Description:
Sometimes when administrators delete users from the password file they neglect to
remove all files owned by those users from the system.
Rationale:
A new user who is assigned the deleted user's user ID or group ID may then end up
"owning" these files, and thus have more access on the system than was intended.
Audit:
# df --local -P | awk {'if (NR!=1) print $6'} | xargs -I '{}' find '{}' -xdev
-nouser
# find <partition> -xdev -nouser
505 | P a g e
Remediation:
Locate files that are owned by users or groups not listed in the system configuration files,
and reset the ownership of these files to some active user on the system as appropriate.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
13.2 Remove Sensitive Data or Systems Not Regularly

Accessed by Organization
v7 Remove sensitive data or systems not regularly accessed by the organization from ● ● ●
the network. These systems shall only be used as stand alone systems (disconnected
from the network) by the business unit needing to occasionally use the system or
completely virtualized and powered off until needed.
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6.1.12 Ensure no ungrouped files or directories exist (Automated)
Description:
Sometimes when administrators delete users or groups from the system they neglect to
remove all files owned by those users or groups.
Rationale:
A new user who is assigned the deleted user's user ID or group ID may then end up
"owning" these files, and thus have more access on the system than was intended.
Audit:
-nogroup
# find <partition> -xdev -nogroup
Remediation:
Locate files that are owned by users or groups not listed in the system configuration files,
and reset the ownership of these files to some active user on the system as appropriate.
507 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
13.2 Remove Sensitive Data or Systems Not Regularly

Accessed by Organization
v7 Remove sensitive data or systems not regularly accessed by the organization from ● ● ●
the network. These systems shall only be used as stand alone systems (disconnected
from the network) by the business unit needing to occasionally use the system or
completely virtualized and powered off until needed.
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6.1.13 Audit SUID executables (Manual)
Description:
The owner of a file can set the file's permissions to run with the owner's or group's
permissions, even if the user running the program is not the owner or a member of the
group. The most common reason for a SUID program is to enable users to perform
functions (such as changing their password) that require root privileges.
Rationale:
There are valid reasons for SUID programs, but it is important to identify and review such
programs to ensure they are legitimate.
Audit:
Run the following command to list SUID files:
-type f -perm -4000
Remediation:
Ensure that no rogue SUID programs have been introduced into the system. Review the
files returned by the action in the Audit section and confirm the integrity of these binaries.
509 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

510 | P a g e
6.1.14 Audit SGID executables (Manual)
Description:
The owner of a file can set the file's permissions to run with the owner's or group's
permissions, even if the user running the program is not the owner or a member of the
group. The most common reason for a SGID program is to enable users to perform
functions (such as changing their password) that require root privileges.
Rationale:
There are valid reasons for SGID programs, but it is important to identify and review such
programs to ensure they are legitimate. Review the files returned by the action in the audit
section and check to see if system binaries have a different md5 checksum than what from
the package. This is an indication that the binary may have been replaced.
Audit:
Run the following command to list SGID files:
-type f -perm -2000
Remediation:
Ensure that no rogue SGID programs have been introduced into the system. Review the
files returned by the action in the Audit section and confirm the integrity of these binaries.
511 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

512 | P a g e
6.2 User and Group Settings
This section provides guidance on securing aspects of the users and groups.
Note: The recommendations in this section check local users and groups. Any users or
groups from other sources such as LDAP will not be audited. In a domain environment
similar checks should be performed against domain users and groups.
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6.2.1 Ensure password fields are not empty (Automated)
Description:
An account with an empty password field means that anybody may log in as that user
without providing a password.
Rationale:
All accounts must have passwords or be locked to prevent the account from being used by
an unauthorized user.
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that no output is returned:
# awk -F: '($2 == "" ) { print $1 " does not have a password "}' /etc/shadow
Remediation:
If any accounts in the /etc/shadow file do not have a password, run the following command
to lock the account until it can be determined why it does not have a password:
# passwd -l <username>
Also, check to see if the account is logged in and investigate what it is being used for to
determine if it needs to be forced off.
514 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

515 | P a g e
6.2.2 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/passwd (Automated)
Description:
The character + in various files used to be markers for systems to insert data from NIS
maps at a certain point in a system configuration file. These entries are no longer required
on most systems, but may exist in files that have been imported from other platforms.
Rationale:
These entries may provide an avenue for attackers to gain privileged access on the system.
Audit:
# grep -P '^\+[^:\n\r]*:' /etc/passwd
Remediation:
Remove any legacy '+' entries from /etc/passwd if they exist.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.
16.2 Configure Centralized Point of Authentication

v7 Configure access for all accounts through as few centralized points of authentication ● ●
as possible, including network, security, and cloud systems.
516 | P a g e
6.2.3 Ensure root PATH Integrity (Automated)
Description:
The root user can execute any command on the system and could be fooled into executing
programs unintentionally if the PATH is not set correctly.
Rationale:
Including the current working directory (.) or other writable directory in root 's executable
path makes it likely that an attacker can gain superuser access by forcing an administrator
operating as root to execute a Trojan horse program.
Audit:
Run the following script and verify no results are returned:
#!/bin/bash
RPCV="$(sudo -Hiu root env | grep '^PATH=' | cut -d= -f2)"

echo "$RPCV" | grep -q "::" && echo "root's path contains a empty directory
(::)"
echo "$RPCV" | grep -q ":$" && echo "root's path contains a trailing (:)"
for x in $(echo "$RPCV" | tr ":" " "); do
if [ -d "$x" ]; then
ls -ldH "$x" | awk '$9 == "." {print "PATH contains current working
directory (.)"}
$3 != "root" {print $9, "is not owned by root"}
substr($1,6,1) != "-" {print $9, "is group writable"}
substr($1,9,1) != "-" {print $9, "is world writable"}'
else
echo "$x is not a directory"
fi
done
Remediation:
Correct or justify any items discovered in the Audit step.
517 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

518 | P a g e
6.2.4 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/shadow (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Audit:
# grep -P '^\+[^:\n\r]*:' /etc/shadow
Remediation:
Remove any legacy '+' entries from /etc/shadow if they exist.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

519 | P a g e
6.2.5 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/group (Automated)
Description:
Rationale:
Audit:
# grep -P '^\+[^:\n\r]*:' /etc/group
Remediation:
Remove any legacy '+' entries from /etc/group if they exist.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

520 | P a g e
6.2.6 Ensure root is the only UID 0 account (Automated)
Description:
Any account with UID 0 has superuser privileges on the system.
Rationale:
This access must be limited to only the default root account and only from the system
console. Administrative access must be through an unprivileged account using an approved
mechanism as noted in recommendation "Ensure access to the su command is restricted".
Audit:
Run the following command and verify that only "root" is returned:
# awk -F: '($3 == 0) { print $1 }' /etc/passwd
root
Remediation:
Remove any users other than root with UID 0 or assign them a new UID if appropriate.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

521 | P a g e
6.2.7 Ensure users' home directories permissions are 750 or more
restrictive (Automated)
Description:
While the system administrator can establish secure permissions for users' home
directories, the users can easily override these.
Rationale:
Group or world-writable user home directories may enable malicious users to steal or
modify other users' data or to gain another user's system privileges.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash
awk -F: '($1!~/(halt|sync|shutdown|nfsnobody)/ &&

$7!~/^(\/usr)?\/sbin\/nologin(\/)?$/ && $7!~/(\/usr)?\/bin\/false(\/)?$/)
{print $1 " " $6}' /etc/passwd | while read -r user dir; do
if [ ! -d "$dir" ]; then
echo "User: \"$user\" home directory: \"$dir\" doesn't exist"
else
dirperm=$(stat -L -c "%A" "$dir")
if [ "$(echo "$dirperm" | cut -c6)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo "$dirperm" |
cut -c8)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo "$dirperm" | cut -c9)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo
"$dirperm" | cut -c10)" != "-" ]; then
echo "User: \"$user\" home directory: \"$dir\" has permissions:
\"$(stat -L -c "%a" "$dir")\""
fi
fi
done
522 | P a g e
Remediation:
Making global modifications to user home directories without alerting the user community
can result in unexpected outages and unhappy users. Therefore, it is recommended that a
monitoring policy be established to report user file permissions and determine the action
to be taken in accordance with site policy.
The following script can be used to remove permissions is excess of 750 from users' home
directories:
#!/bin/bash

$7!~/^(\/usr)?\/sbin\/nologin(\/)?$/ && $7!~/(\/usr)?\/bin\/false(\/)?$/)
{print $6}' /etc/passwd | while read -r dir; do
if [ -d "$dir" ]; then
dirperm=$(stat -L -c "%A" "$dir")
if [ "$(echo "$dirperm" | cut -c6)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo "$dirperm" |
cut -c8)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo "$dirperm" | cut -c9)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo
"$dirperm" | cut -c10)" != "-" ]; then
chmod g-w,o-rwx "$dir"
fi
fi
done
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

523 | P a g e
6.2.8 Ensure users own their home directories (Automated)
Description:
The user home directory is space defined for the particular user to set local environment
variables and to store personal files.
Rationale:
Since the user is accountable for files stored in the user home directory, the user must be
the owner of the directory.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash

$7!~/^(\/usr)?\/sbin\/nologin(\/)?$/ && $7!~/(\/usr)?\/bin\/false(\/)?$/) {
print $1 " " $6 }' /etc/passwd | while read -r user dir; do
echo "User: \"$user\" home directory: \"$dir\" does not exist."
else
owner=$(stat -L -c "%U" "$dir")
if [ "$owner" != "$user" ]; then
echo "User: \"$user\" home directory: \"$dir\" is owned by
\"$owner\""
fi
fi
done
524 | P a g e
Remediation:
Change the ownership of any home directories that are not owned by the defined user to
the correct user.
The following script will create missing home directories, set the owner, and set the
permissions for interactive users' home directories:
#!/bin/bash

echo "User: \"$user\" home directory: \"$dir\" does not exist, creating
home directory"
mkdir "$dir"
chown "$user" "$dir"
else
owner=$(stat -L -c "%U" "$dir")
if [ "$owner" != "$user" ]; then
fi
fi
done
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

525 | P a g e
6.2.9 Ensure users' dot files are not group or world writable
(Automated)
Description:
While the system administrator can establish secure permissions for users' "dot" files, the
users can easily override these.
Rationale:
Group or world-writable user configuration files may enable malicious users to steal or
modify other users' data or to gain another user's system privileges.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash

for file in "$dir"/.*; do
if [ ! -h "$file" ] && [ -f "$file" ]; then
fileperm=$(stat -L -c "%A" "$file")
if [ "$(echo "$fileperm" | cut -c6)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo
"$fileperm" | cut -c9)" != "-" ]; then
echo "User: \"$user\" file: \"$file\" has permissions:
\"$fileperm\""
fi
fi
done
fi
done
526 | P a g e
Remediation:
Making global modifications to users' files without alerting the user community can result
in unexpected outages and unhappy users. Therefore, it is recommended that a monitoring
policy be established to report user dot file permissions and determine the action to be
taken in accordance with site policy.
The following script will remove excessive permissions on dot files within interactive
users' home directories.
#!/bin/bash

print $6 }' /etc/passwd | while read -r dir; do
for file in "$dir"/.*; do
fileperm=$(stat -L -c "%A" "$file")
if [ "$(echo "$fileperm" | cut -c6)" != "-" ] || [ "$(echo
"$fileperm" | cut -c9)" != "-" ]; then
chmod go-w "$file"
fi
fi
done
fi
done
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

527 | P a g e
6.2.10 Ensure no users have .forward files (Automated)
Description:
The .forward file specifies an email address to forward the user's mail to.
Rationale:
Use of the .forward file poses a security risk in that sensitive data may be inadvertently
transferred outside the organization. The .forward file also poses a risk as it can be used to
execute commands that may perform unintended actions.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash
awk -F: '($1!~/(root|halt|sync|shutdown|nfsnobody)/ &&

file="$dir/.forward"
echo "User: \"$user\" file: \"$file\" exists"
fi
fi
done
528 | P a g e
Remediation:
policy be established to report user .forward files and determine the action to be taken in
accordance with site policy.
The following script will remove .forward files from interactive users' home directories
#!/bin/bash

file="$dir/.forward"
[ ! -h "$file" ] && [ -f "$file" ] && rm -r "$file"
fi
done
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

529 | P a g e
6.2.11 Ensure no users have .netrc files (Automated)
Description:
The .netrc file contains data for logging into a remote host for file transfers via FTP.
Rationale:
The .netrc file presents a significant security risk since it stores passwords in unencrypted
form. Even if FTP is disabled, user accounts may have brought over .netrc files from other
systems which could pose a risk to those systems.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash

file="$dir/.netrc"
fi
fi
done
530 | P a g e
Remediation:
policy be established to report user .netrc files and determine the action to be taken in
The following script will remove .netrc files from interactive users' home directories
#!/bin/bash

file="$dir/.netrc"
[ ! -h "$file" ] && [ -f "$file" ] && rm -f "$file"
fi
done
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

v7
● ●
531 | P a g e
6.2.12 Ensure users' .netrc Files are not group or world accessible
(Automated)
Description:
While the system administrator can establish secure permissions for users' .netrc files, the
users can easily override these.
Rationale:
The .netrc file presents a significant security risk since it stores passwords in unencrypted
form. Even if FTP is disabled, user accounts may have brought over .netrc files from other
systems which could pose a risk to those systems.
If a .netrc file is required, and follows local site policy, it should have permissions of 600 or
more restrictive.
532 | P a g e
Audit:
Run the following script. This script will return:
 FAILED: for any .netrc file with permissions less restrictive than 600
 WARNING: for any .netrc files that exist in interactive users' home directories.
#!/bin/bash

file="$dir/.netrc"
if stat -L -c "%A" "$file" | cut -c4-10 | grep -Eq '[^-]+'; then
echo "FAILED: User: \"$user\" file: \"$file\" exists with
permissions: \"$(stat -L -c "%a" "$file")\", remove file or excessive
permissions"
else
echo "WARNING: User: \"$user\" file: \"$file\" exists with
permissions: \"$(stat -L -c "%a" "$file")\", remove file unless required"
fi
fi
fi
done
Verify:
 Any lines beginning with FAILED: - File should be removed unless deemed
necessary, in accordance with local site policy, and permissions are updated to be
600 or more restrictive
 Any lines beginning with WARNING: - File should be removed unless deemed
necessary, and in accordance with local site policy
533 | P a g e
Remediation:
policy be established to report user .netrc files and determine the action to be taken in
The following script will remove .netrc files from interactive users' home directories
#!/bin/bash

file="$dir/.netrc"
[ ! -h "$file" ] && [ -f "$file" ] && rm -f "$file"
fi
done
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●

534 | P a g e
6.2.13 Ensure no users have .rhosts files (Automated)
Description:
While no .rhosts files are shipped by default, users can easily create them.
Rationale:
This action is only meaningful if .rhosts support is permitted in the file /etc/pam.conf .
Even though the .rhosts files are ineffective if support is disabled in /etc/pam.conf , they
may have been brought over from other systems and could contain information useful to
an attacker for those other systems.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash

file="$dir/.rhosts"
fi
fi
done
535 | P a g e
Remediation:
policy be established to report user .rhosts files and determine the action to be taken in
The following script will remove .rhosts files from interactive users' home directories
#!/bin/bash

file="$dir/.rhosts"
[ ! -h "$file" ] && [ -f "$file" ] && rm -r "$file"
fi
done
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

v7
● ●
536 | P a g e
6.2.14 Ensure all groups in /etc/passwd exist in /etc/group (Automated)
Description:
Over time, system administration errors and changes can lead to groups being defined in
/etc/passwd but not in /etc/group .
Rationale:
Groups defined in the /etc/passwd file but not in the /etc/group file pose a threat to
system security since group permissions are not properly managed.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash
for i in $(cut -s -d: -f4 /etc/passwd | sort -u ); do

grep -q -P "^.*?:[^:]*:$i:" /etc/group
if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
echo "Group $i is referenced by /etc/passwd but does not exist in
/etc/group"
fi
done
Remediation:
Analyze the output of the Audit step above and perform the appropriate action to correct
any discrepancies found.
537 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

538 | P a g e
6.2.15 Ensure no duplicate UIDs exist (Automated)
Description:
Although the useradd program will not let you create a duplicate User ID (UID), it is
possible for an administrator to manually edit the /etc/passwd file and change the UID
field.
Rationale:
Users must be assigned unique UIDs for accountability and to ensure appropriate access
protections.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash
cut -f3 -d":" /etc/passwd | sort -n | uniq -c | while read x ; do

[ -z "$x" ] && break
set - $x
if [ $1 -gt 1 ]; then
users=$(awk -F: '($3 == n) { print $1 }' n=$2 /etc/passwd | xargs)
echo "Duplicate UID ($2): $users"
fi
done
Remediation:
Based on the results of the audit script, establish unique UIDs and review all files owned by
the shared UIDs to determine which UID they are supposed to belong to.
539 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

540 | P a g e
6.2.16 Ensure no duplicate GIDs exist (Automated)
Description:
Although the groupadd program will not let you create a duplicate Group ID (GID), it is
possible for an administrator to manually edit the /etc/group file and change the GID field.
Rationale:
User groups must be assigned unique GIDs for accountability and to ensure appropriate
access protections.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash
cut -d: -f3 /etc/group | sort | uniq -d | while read x ; do

echo "Duplicate GID ($x) in /etc/group"
done
Remediation:
Based on the results of the audit script, establish unique GIDs and review all files owned by
the shared GID to determine which group they are supposed to belong to.
You can also use the grpck command to check for other inconsistencies in the /etc/group
file.
541 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

542 | P a g e
6.2.17 Ensure no duplicate user names exist (Automated)
Description:
Although the useradd program will not let you create a duplicate user name, it is possible
for an administrator to manually edit the /etc/passwd file and change the user name.
Rationale:
If a user is assigned a duplicate user name, it will create and have access to files with the
first UID for that username in /etc/passwd . For example, if "test4" has a UID of 1000 and a
subsequent "test4" entry has a UID of 2000, logging in as "test4" will use UID 1000.
Effectively, the UID is shared, which is a security problem.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash
cut -d: -f1 /etc/passwd | sort | uniq -d | while read x; do

echo "Duplicate login name ${x} in /etc/passwd"
done
Remediation:
Based on the results of the audit script, establish unique user names for the users. File
ownerships will automatically reflect the change as long as the users have unique UIDs.
543 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

544 | P a g e
6.2.18 Ensure no duplicate group names exist (Automated)
Description:
Although the groupadd program will not let you create a duplicate group name, it is
possible for an administrator to manually edit the /etc/group file and change the group
name.
Rationale:
If a group is assigned a duplicate group name, it will create and have access to files with the
first GID for that group in /etc/group . Effectively, the GID is shared, which is a security
problem.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash
cut -d: -f1 /etc/group | sort | uniq -d | while read -r x; do

echo "Duplicate group name ${x} in /etc/group"
done
Remediation:
Based on the results of the audit script, establish unique names for the user groups. File
group ownerships will automatically reflect the change as long as the groups have unique
GIDs.
545 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

546 | P a g e
6.2.19 Ensure shadow group is empty (Automated)
Description:
The shadow group allows system programs which require access the ability to read the
/etc/shadow file. No users should be assigned to the shadow group.
Rationale:
Any users assigned to the shadow group would be granted read access to the /etc/shadow
file. If attackers can gain read access to the /etc/shadow file, they can easily run a password
cracking program against the hashed passwords to break them. Other security information
that is stored in the /etc/shadow file (such as expiration) could also be useful to subvert
additional user accounts.
Audit:
Run the following commands and verify no results are returned:
# awk -F: '($1=="shadow") {print $NF}' /etc/group

# awk -F: -v GID="$(awk -F: '($1=="shadow") {print $3}' /etc/group)"
'($4==GID) {print $1}' /etc/passwd
Remediation:
Run the following command to remove all users from the shadow group
# sed -ri 's/(^shadow:[^:]*:[^:]*:)([^:]+$)/\1/' /etc/group
Change the primary group of any users with shadow as their primary group.
# usermod -g <primary group> <user>
547 | P a g e
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

548 | P a g e
6.2.20 Ensure all users' home directories exist (Automated)
Description:
Users can be defined in /etc/passwd without a home directory or with a home directory
that does not actually exist.
Rationale:
If the user's home directory does not exist or is unassigned, the user will be placed in "/"
and will not be able to write any files or have local environment variables set.
Audit:
#!/bin/bash

echo "User: \"$user\" home directory: \"$dir\" does not exist."
fi
done
Note: The audit script checks all users with interactive shells except halt, sync, shutdown, and
nfsnobody.
549 | P a g e
Remediation:
If any users' home directories do not exist, create them and make sure the respective user
owns the directory. Users without an assigned home directory should be removed or
assigned a home directory as appropriate.
The following script will create a home directory for users with an interactive shell whose
home directory doesn't exist:
#!/bin/bash

mkdir "$dir"
chmod g-w,o-wrx "$dir"
fi
done
The audit script checks all users with interactive shells except halt, sync, shutdown, and
nfsnobody.
CIS Controls:
Controls
Version

v8
● ● ●
Safeguard.

550 | P a g e
Appendix: Recommendation Summary
Table
Control Set
Correctly
Yes No
1 Initial Setup
1.1 Filesystem Configuration
1.1.1 Disable unused filesystems
1.1.1.1 Ensure mounting of cramfs filesystems is disabled
 
(Automated)
1.1.1.2 Ensure mounting of vFAT filesystems is limited (Manual)  
1.1.1.3 Ensure mounting of squashfs filesystems is disabled
 
(Automated)
1.1.1.4 Ensure mounting of udf filesystems is disabled (Automated)  
1.1.2 Ensure /tmp is configured (Automated)  
1.1.3 Ensure nodev option set on /tmp partition (Automated)  
1.1.4 Ensure nosuid option set on /tmp partition (Automated)  
1.1.5 Ensure noexec option set on /tmp partition (Automated)  
1.1.6 Ensure separate partition exists for /var (Automated)  
1.1.7 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/tmp (Automated)  
1.1.8 Ensure nodev option set on /var/tmp partition (Automated)  
1.1.9 Ensure nosuid option set on /var/tmp partition
 
(Automated)
1.1.10 Ensure noexec option set on /var/tmp partition
 
(Automated)
1.1.11 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/log (Automated)  
1.1.12 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/log/audit
 
(Automated)
1.1.13 Ensure separate partition exists for /home (Automated)  
1.1.14 Ensure nodev option set on /home partition (Automated)  
1.1.15 Ensure nodev option set on /dev/shm partition
 
(Automated)
1.1.16 Ensure nosuid option set on /dev/shm partition
 
(Automated)
1.1.17 Ensure noexec option set on /dev/shm partition
 
(Automated)
1.1.18 Ensure nodev option set on removable media partitions
 
(Manual)
1.1.19 Ensure nosuid option set on removable media partitions
 
(Manual)
551 | P a g e
1.1.20 Ensure noexec option set on removable media partitions
 
(Manual)
1.1.21 Ensure sticky bit is set on all world-writable directories
 
(Automated)
1.1.22 Disable Automounting (Automated)  
1.1.23 Disable USB Storage (Automated)  
1.2 Configure Software Updates
1.2.1 Ensure GPG keys are configured (Manual)  
1.2.2 Ensure gpgcheck is globally activated (Automated)  
1.2.3 Ensure package manager repositories are configured
 
(Manual)
1.3 Configure sudo
1.3.1 Ensure sudo is installed (Automated)  
1.3.2 Ensure sudo commands use pty (Automated)  
1.3.3 Ensure sudo log file exists (Automated)  
1.4 Filesystem Integrity Checking
1.4.1 Ensure AIDE is installed (Automated)  
1.4.2 Ensure filesystem integrity is regularly checked
 
(Automated)
1.5 Secure Boot Settings
1.5.1 Ensure permissions on bootloader config are configured
 
(Automated)
1.5.2 Ensure bootloader password is set (Automated)  
1.5.3 Ensure authentication required for single user mode
 
(Automated)
1.6 Additional Process Hardening
1.6.1 Ensure core dumps are restricted (Automated)  
1.6.2 Ensure address space layout randomization (ASLR) is
 
enabled (Automated)
1.7 Mandatory Access Control
1.7.1 Configure SELinux
1.7.1.1 Ensure SELinux is installed (Automated)  
1.7.1.2 Ensure SELinux is not disabled in bootloader configuration
 
(Automated)
1.7.1.3 Ensure SELinux policy is configured (Automated)  
1.7.1.4 Ensure the SELinux state is enforcing (Automated)  
1.7.1.5 Ensure no unconfined services exist (Automated)  
1.7.1.6 Ensure SETroubleshoot is not installed (Automated)  
1.7.1.7 Ensure the MCS Translation Service (mcstrans) is not
 
installed (Automated)
1.8 Warning Banners
1.8.1 Command Line Warning Banners
552 | P a g e
1.8.1.1 Ensure message of the day is configured properly
 
(Automated)
1.8.1.2 Ensure local login warning banner is configured properly
 
(Automated)
1.8.1.3 Ensure remote login warning banner is configured properly
 
(Automated)
1.8.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/motd are configured
 
(Automated)
1.8.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/issue are configured
 
(Automated)
1.8.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/issue.net are configured
 
(Automated)
1.8.2 Ensure GDM login banner is configured (Automated)  
1.9 Ensure updates, patches, and additional security software
 
are installed (Manual)
1.10 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is not legacy (Automated)  
1.11 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is FUTURE or FIPS
 
(Automated)
2 Services
2.1 inetd Services
2.1.1 Ensure xinetd is not installed (Automated)  
2.2 Special Purpose Services
2.2.1 Time Synchronization
2.2.1.1 Ensure time synchronization is in use (Manual)  
2.2.1.2 Ensure chrony is configured (Automated)  
2.2.2 Ensure X Window System is not installed (Automated)  
2.2.3 Ensure rsync service is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.4 Ensure Avahi Server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.5 Ensure SNMP Server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.6 Ensure HTTP Proxy Server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.7 Ensure Samba is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.8 Ensure IMAP and POP3 server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.9 Ensure HTTP server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.10 Ensure FTP Server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.11 Ensure DNS Server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.12 Ensure NFS is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.13 Ensure RPC is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.14 Ensure LDAP server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.15 Ensure DHCP Server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.16 Ensure CUPS is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.17 Ensure NIS Server is not enabled (Automated)  
2.2.18 Ensure mail transfer agent is configured for local-only mode
 
(Automated)
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2.3 Service Clients
2.3.1 Ensure NIS Client is not installed (Automated)  
2.3.2 Ensure telnet client is not installed (Automated)  
2.3.3 Ensure LDAP client is not installed (Automated)  
3 Network Configuration
3.1 Network Parameters (Host Only)
3.1.1 Ensure IP forwarding is disabled (Automated)  
3.1.2 Ensure packet redirect sending is disabled (Automated)  
3.2 Network Parameters (Host and Router)
3.2.1 Ensure source routed packets are not accepted (Automated)  
3.2.2 Ensure ICMP redirects are not accepted (Automated)  
3.2.3 Ensure secure ICMP redirects are not accepted (Automated)  
3.2.4 Ensure suspicious packets are logged (Automated)  
3.2.5 Ensure broadcast ICMP requests are ignored (Automated)  
3.2.6 Ensure bogus ICMP responses are ignored (Automated)  
3.2.7 Ensure Reverse Path Filtering is enabled (Automated)  
3.2.8 Ensure TCP SYN Cookies is enabled (Automated)  
3.2.9 Ensure IPv6 router advertisements are not accepted
 
(Automated)
3.3 Uncommon Network Protocols
3.3.1 Ensure DCCP is disabled (Automated)  
3.3.2 Ensure SCTP is disabled (Automated)  
3.3.3 Ensure RDS is disabled (Automated)  
3.3.4 Ensure TIPC is disabled (Automated)  
3.4 Firewall Configuration
3.4.1 Ensure Firewall software is installed
3.4.1.1 Ensure a Firewall package is installed (Automated)  
3.4.2 Configure firewalld
3.4.2.1 Ensure firewalld service is enabled and running
 
(Automated)
3.4.2.2 Ensure iptables service is not enabled with firewalld
 
(Automated)
3.4.2.3 Ensure nftables is not enabled with firewalld (Automated)  
3.4.2.4 Ensure firewalld default zone is set (Automated)  
3.4.2.5 Ensure network interfaces are assigned to appropriate zone
 
(Manual)
3.4.2.6 Ensure firewalld drops unnecessary services and ports
 
(Manual)
3.4.3 Configure nftables
3.4.3.1 Ensure iptables are flushed with nftables (Manual)  
3.4.3.2 Ensure an nftables table exists (Automated)  
3.4.3.3 Ensure nftables base chains exist (Automated)  
3.4.3.4 Ensure nftables loopback traffic is configured (Automated)  
554 | P a g e
3.4.3.5 Ensure nftables outbound and established connections are
 
configured (Manual)
3.4.3.6 Ensure nftables default deny firewall policy (Automated)  
3.4.3.7 Ensure nftables service is enabled (Automated)  
3.4.3.8 Ensure nftables rules are permanent (Automated)  
3.4.4 Configure iptables
3.4.4.1 Configure IPv4 iptables
3.4.4.1.1 Ensure iptables default deny firewall policy (Automated)  
3.4.4.1.2 Ensure iptables loopback traffic is configured (Automated)  
3.4.4.1.3 Ensure iptables outbound and established connections are
 
configured (Manual)
3.4.4.1.4 Ensure iptables firewall rules exist for all open ports
 
(Automated)
3.4.4.1.5 Ensure iptables is enabled and active (Automated)  
3.4.4.1.6 Ensure iptables is enabled and active (Automated)  
3.4.4.2 Configure IPv6 ip6tables
3.4.4.2.1 Ensure ip6tables default deny firewall policy (Automated)  
3.4.4.2.2 Ensure ip6tables loopback traffic is configured (Automated)  
3.4.4.2.3 Ensure ip6tables outbound and established connections are
 
configured (Manual)
3.4.4.2.4 Ensure ip6tables firewall rules exist for all open ports
 
(Automated)
3.4.4.2.5 Ensure ip6tables is enabled and active (Automated)  
3.5 Ensure wireless interfaces are disabled (Automated)  
3.6 Disable IPv6 (Manual)  
4 Logging and Auditing
4.1 Configure System Accounting (auditd)
4.1.1 Ensure auditing is enabled
4.1.1.1 Ensure auditd is installed (Automated)  
4.1.1.2 Ensure auditd service is enabled (Automated)  
4.1.1.3 Ensure auditing for processes that start prior to auditd is
 
enabled (Automated)
4.1.1.4 Ensure audit_backlog_limit is sufficient (Automated)  
4.1.2 Configure Data Retention
4.1.2.1 Ensure audit log storage size is configured (Automated)  
4.1.2.2 Ensure audit logs are not automatically deleted
 
(Automated)
4.1.2.3 Ensure system is disabled when audit logs are full
 
(Automated)
4.1.3 Ensure changes to system administration scope (sudoers) is
 
4.1.4 Ensure login and logout events are collected (Automated)  
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4.1.5 Ensure session initiation information is collected
 
(Automated)
4.1.6 Ensure events that modify date and time information are
 
4.1.7 Ensure events that modify the system's Mandatory Access
 
Controls are collected (Automated)
4.1.8 Ensure events that modify the system's network
 
environment are collected (Automated)
4.1.9 Ensure discretionary access control permission
 
modification events are collected (Automated)
4.1.10 Ensure unsuccessful unauthorized file access attempts are
 
4.1.11 Ensure events that modify user/group information are
 
4.1.12 Ensure successful file system mounts are collected
 
(Automated)
4.1.13 Ensure use of privileged commands is collected
 
(Automated)
4.1.14 Ensure file deletion events by users are collected
 
(Automated)
4.1.15 Ensure kernel module loading and unloading is collected
 
(Automated)
4.1.16 Ensure system administrator actions (sudolog) are collected
 
(Automated)
4.1.17 Ensure the audit configuration is immutable (Automated)  
4.2 Configure Logging
4.2.1 Configure rsyslog
4.2.1.1 Ensure rsyslog is installed (Automated)  
4.2.1.2 Ensure rsyslog Service is enabled (Automated)  
4.2.1.3 Ensure rsyslog default file permissions configured
 
(Automated)
4.2.1.4 Ensure logging is configured (Manual)  
4.2.1.5 Ensure rsyslog is configured to send logs to a remote log
 
host (Automated)
4.2.1.6 Ensure remote rsyslog messages are only accepted on
 
designated log hosts. (Manual)
4.2.2 Configure journald
4.2.2.1 Ensure journald is configured to send logs to rsyslog
 
(Automated)
4.2.2.2 Ensure journald is configured to compress large log files
 
(Automated)
4.2.2.3 Ensure journald is configured to write logfiles to persistent
 
disk (Automated)
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4.2.3 Ensure permissions on all logfiles are configured
 
(Automated)
4.3 Ensure logrotate is configured (Manual)  
5 Access, Authentication and Authorization
5.1 Configure cron
5.1.1 Ensure cron daemon is enabled (Automated)  
5.1.2 Ensure permissions on /etc/crontab are configured
 
(Automated)
5.1.3 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.hourly are configured
 
(Automated)
5.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.daily are configured
 
(Automated)
5.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.weekly are configured
 
(Automated)
5.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.monthly are configured
 
(Automated)
5.1.7 Ensure permissions on /etc/cron.d are configured
 
(Automated)
5.1.8 Ensure at/cron is restricted to authorized users
 
(Automated)
5.2 SSH Server Configuration
5.2.1 Ensure permissions on /etc/ssh/sshd_config are configured
 
(Automated)
5.2.2 Ensure SSH access is limited (Automated)  
5.2.3 Ensure permissions on SSH private host key files are
 
configured (Automated)
5.2.4 Ensure permissions on SSH public host key files are
 
configured (Automated)
5.2.5 Ensure SSH LogLevel is appropriate (Automated)  
5.2.6 Ensure SSH X11 forwarding is disabled (Automated)  
5.2.7 Ensure SSH MaxAuthTries is set to 4 or less (Automated)  
5.2.8 Ensure SSH IgnoreRhosts is enabled (Automated)  
5.2.9 Ensure SSH HostbasedAuthentication is disabled
 
(Automated)
5.2.10 Ensure SSH root login is disabled (Automated)  
5.2.11 Ensure SSH PermitEmptyPasswords is disabled
 
(Automated)
5.2.12 Ensure SSH PermitUserEnvironment is disabled
 
(Automated)
5.2.13 Ensure SSH Idle Timeout Interval is configured (Automated)  
5.2.14 Ensure SSH LoginGraceTime is set to one minute or less
 
(Automated)
5.2.15 Ensure SSH warning banner is configured (Automated)  
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5.2.16 Ensure SSH PAM is enabled (Automated)  
5.2.17 Ensure SSH AllowTcpForwarding is disabled (Automated)  
5.2.18 Ensure SSH MaxStartups is configured (Automated)  
5.2.19 Ensure SSH MaxSessions is set to 4 or less (Automated)  
5.2.20 Ensure system-wide crypto policy is not over-ridden
 
(Automated)
5.3 Configure authselect
5.3.1 Create custom authselect profile (Automated)  
5.3.2 Select authselect profile (Automated)  
5.3.3 Ensure authselect includes with-faillock (Automated)  
5.4 Configure PAM
5.4.1 Ensure password creation requirements are configured
 
(Automated)
5.4.2 Ensure lockout for failed password attempts is configured
 
(Automated)
5.4.3 Ensure password reuse is limited (Automated)  
5.4.4 Ensure password hashing algorithm is SHA-512
 
(Automated)
5.5 User Accounts and Environment
5.5.1 Set Shadow Password Suite Parameters
5.5.1.1 Ensure password expiration is 365 days or less (Automated)  
5.5.1.2 Ensure minimum days between password changes is 7 or
 
more (Automated)
5.5.1.3 Ensure password expiration warning days is 7 or more
 
(Automated)
5.5.1.4 Ensure inactive password lock is 30 days or less
 
(Automated)
5.5.1.5 Ensure all users last password change date is in the past
 
(Automated)
5.5.2 Ensure system accounts are secured (Automated)  
5.5.3 Ensure default user shell timeout is 900 seconds or less
 
(Automated)
5.5.4 Ensure default group for the root account is GID 0
 
(Automated)
5.5.5 Ensure default user umask is 027 or more restrictive
 
(Automated)
5.6 Ensure root login is restricted to system console (Manual)  
5.7 Ensure access to the su command is restricted (Automated)  
6 System Maintenance
6.1 System File Permissions
6.1.1 Audit system file permissions (Manual)  
6.1.2 Ensure permissions on /etc/passwd are configured
 
(Automated)
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6.1.3 Ensure permissions on /etc/passwd- are configured
 
(Automated)
6.1.4 Ensure permissions on /etc/shadow are configured
 
(Automated)
6.1.5 Ensure permissions on /etc/shadow- are configured
 
(Automated)
6.1.6 Ensure permissions on /etc/gshadow are configured
 
(Automated)
6.1.7 Ensure permissions on /etc/gshadow- are configured
 
(Automated)
6.1.8 Ensure permissions on /etc/group are configured
 
(Automated)
6.1.9 Ensure permissions on /etc/group- are configured
 
(Automated)
6.1.10 Ensure no world writable files exist (Automated)  
6.1.11 Ensure no unowned files or directories exist (Automated)  
6.1.12 Ensure no ungrouped files or directories exist (Automated)  
6.1.13 Audit SUID executables (Manual)  
6.1.14 Audit SGID executables (Manual)  
6.2 User and Group Settings
6.2.1 Ensure password fields are not empty (Automated)  
6.2.2 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/passwd
 
(Automated)
6.2.3 Ensure root PATH Integrity (Automated)  
6.2.4 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/shadow
 
(Automated)
6.2.5 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist in /etc/group
 
(Automated)
6.2.6 Ensure root is the only UID 0 account (Automated)  
6.2.7 Ensure users' home directories permissions are 750 or
 
more restrictive (Automated)
6.2.8 Ensure users own their home directories (Automated)  
6.2.9 Ensure users' dot files are not group or world writable
 
(Automated)
6.2.10 Ensure no users have .forward files (Automated)  
6.2.11 Ensure no users have .netrc files (Automated)  
6.2.12 Ensure users' .netrc Files are not group or world accessible
 
(Automated)
6.2.13 Ensure no users have .rhosts files (Automated)  
6.2.14 Ensure all groups in /etc/passwd exist in /etc/group
 
(Automated)
6.2.15 Ensure no duplicate UIDs exist (Automated)  
6.2.16 Ensure no duplicate GIDs exist (Automated)  
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6.2.17 Ensure no duplicate user names exist (Automated)  
6.2.18 Ensure no duplicate group names exist (Automated)  
6.2.19 Ensure shadow group is empty (Automated)  
6.2.20 Ensure all users' home directories exist (Automated)  
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Appendix: Change History
Date Version Changes for this version
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 Quotes around file name are not mandatory (Ticket 9775)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 Remediation procedure does not work (Ticket 9538)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 UDPATE - Ensure filesystem integrity is regularly checked (Ticket
8770)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 Service aidecheck and aidecheck.timer not available on RHEL 8
(Ticket 9817)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 .timer is added when using Artifacts (Ticket 11360)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 UEFI (Ticket 9879)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 UEFI (Ticket 9878)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 Package GDM3 not available for RHEL 8 (Ticket 9816)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Ensure GDM login banner is configured (Ticket 9512)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 Remediation would remove linux-firmware package (Ticket 12232)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 Service "nfs" does not exist in RHEL8. (Ticket 12588)
Apr 27, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Ensure NFS is not enabled (Ticket 9510)
Apr 28, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Ensure system-wide crypto policy is FUTURE or FIPS
(Ticket 11381)
Apr 28, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Services - All services checks need to have AAC updated
(Ticket 12769)
Apr 28, 2021 1.0.1 Disabling IPv6 Causes Systems With Compliant IPv4 Settings To Fail
(Ticket 10648)
Apr 28, 2021 1.0.1 IPV6 disabled (Ticket 9882)
561 | P a g e
Apr 29, 2021 1.0.1 Rule 3.4.2.3 of CentOS 8 Assessor differs from description in PDF
(Ticket 11429)
May 3, 2021 1.0.1 RHEL8 - 1.7.1.5 Ensure no unconfined services exist Script Error
(Ticket 10970)
May 3, 2021 1.0.1 IPV6 disabled (Ticket 9883)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Configure nftables (Ticket 12810)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 The XML Implementation of Artifact Equation is mistaken (Ticket
10865)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 àwk '/hook input/,/}/'` might fail to catch all the rules (Ticket
10864)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 I think Some Audit and Remediation Command incorrect. (Ticket
12754)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 Review Title in similar CIS items: Ensure loopback traffic is
configured, Ensure default deny firewall policy (Ticket 9680)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Ensure outbound and established connections are
configured (Ticket 12820)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 audit procedure does not match sample output or remediation
(Ticket 12806)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 umask check is wrong (Ticket 12373)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 Ensure default user umask is 027 or more restrictive (Ticket 9621)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Ensure default user shell timeout is 900 seconds or less
(Ticket 8899)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 Setting variable in either /etc/profile or in /etc/profile/*.sh (Ticket

12550)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 TMOUT example output is unclear (Ticket 11893)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 Error in Audit procedure for "5.5.3 Ensure default user shell timeout
is 900 seconds or less" (Ticket 10518)
May 4, 2021 1.0.1 Test should be profile OR profile.d/*.sh, not AND. (Ticket 9777)
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May 4, 2021 1.0.1 Incorrect Audit Procedure for 5.5.3 (Ticket 10885)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 auditctl output format has changed (Ticket 9478)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 Inconsistent audit search patterns (Ticket 11357)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 Wrong reference in Note (Ticket 10202)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 auditctl output format has changed (Ticket 9479)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Ensure events that modify the system's Mandatory Access
Controls are collected (Ticket 9491)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 RHEL 8 - auditd - 4.1.9 Ensure discretionary access control
permission modification events are collected (Ticket 10968)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 4.1.9 Audit commands needs correction (Ticket 11087)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 RHEL 8 - auditd - 4.1.9 Ensure discretionary access control
permission modification events are collected (Ticket 10204)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 Bug in test script (Ticket 9779)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 Some Centos 8.x audit rules fail because of format change in
"auditctl -l" output (Ticket 11430)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 audit is incorrect (Ticket 9537)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 Allow for logfile parameter in sudoers file being quoted (Ticket
9487)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 Test 4.1.16 looks to be ignoring location for sudo log event collection
(Ticket 9899)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 4.2.3 Ensure permissions on all logfiles are configured (Scored) -
Permission Issues on default services. (Ticket 10914)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 RHEL 8 audit rules section not passing (Ticket 12584)
May 10, 2021 1.0.1 on rhel8 sce/audit.sh and sce/auditd_uid_file.sh fail to assess valid
rules for section 4.1.9 (Ticket 12229)
May 11, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Ensure root PATH Integrity (Ticket 8837)
May 11, 2021 1.0.1 Typos in Audit Procedure (Ticket 10213)
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May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Default group is ssh_keys (Ticket 9536)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 ssh private host keys are configured for root instead of ssh_keys
(Ticket 12076)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 sshd -T fails when there are match groups (Ticket 10923)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 RHEL 8 - 5.2 SSH Server Configuration - 5.2.5 to 5.2.19 - Fail with
'Match User' in configuration but 'user' not in connection test
specification. (Ticket 10105)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Audit should look for pam_faillock being used rather than authselect
option (Ticket 9484)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Audit and remediation procedures use wrong module name (Ticket
9483)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Typo - checking for wrong module (Ticket 9780)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 pam_pwhistory.so (Ticket 9876)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Rule 5.5.1.2 reports failure even though manual audit indicates
success (Ticket 11432)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - System File Permissions (Ticket 12896)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Permissions of /etc/passwd- are reset to 644 automatically (Ticket
10640)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Wrong reference in Rationale Statement (Ticket 10203)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Regular expression for rule '6.2.5 Ensure no legacy "+" entries exist
in /etc/group' (and similarly 6.2.4 & 6.2.6) (Ticket 12275)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 RedHat 8 uses /sbin/nologin, 'which nologin' returns
/usr/sbin/nologin (Ticket 11936)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 The RegEx Used For Rule Existence Checking Is Not Compatible
With Multiport (Ticket 10863)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Firewall Configuration (Ticket 12780)
May 12, 2021 1.0.1 Benchmark bias towards BIOS based hardware (1.4.1, 1.4.2, 3.3.3,
4.1.3) (Ticket 6511)
564 | P a g e
May 18, 2021 1.0.1 UPDATE - Platform check (Ticket 12765)
May 19, 2021 1.0.1 PUBLISHED
565 | P a g e

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Terms of Use ........................................................................................................................................................... 1

Italic font Used to denote the title of a book, article, or other

Note Additional information or caveats

Represents recommendations for which assessment of a technical control can be fully

Represents recommendations for which assessment of a technical control cannot be fully

Items in this profile intend to:

o be practical and prudent;

This profile is intended for servers.

o are intended for environments or use cases where security is paramount.

This profile is intended for servers.

Items in this profile intend to:

o be practical and prudent;

This profile is intended for workstations.

o are intended for environments or use cases where security is paramount.

This profile is intended for workstations.

Run the following commands and verify the output is as indicated:

# lsmod | grep cramfs

Edit or create a file in the /etc/modprobe.d/ directory ending in .conf

install cramfs /bin/true

Run the following command to unload the cramfs module:

4.1 Establish and Maintain a Secure Configuration Process

5.1 Establish Secure Configurations

grep -E -i '\svfat\s' /etc/fstab

And review that any output is appropriate for your environment

# lsmod | grep vfat

Edit or create a file in the /etc/modprobe.d/ directory ending in .conf

install vfat /bin/true

Run the following command to unload the vfat module:

4.1 Establish and Maintain a Secure Configuration Process

5.1 Establish Secure Configurations

The squashfs filesystem type is a compressed read-only Linux filesystem embedded in

Run the following commands and verify the output is as indicated:

# lsmod | grep squashfs

Edit or create a file in the /etc/modprobe.d/ directory ending in .conf

install squashfs /bin/true

Run the following command to unload the squashfs module:

4.1 Establish and Maintain a Secure Configuration Process

5.1 Establish Secure Configurations

Run the following commands and verify the output is as indicated:

# lsmod | grep udf

Edit or create a file in the /etc/modprobe.d/ directory ending in .conf

install udf /bin/true

Run the following command to unload the udf module:

4.1 Establish and Maintain a Secure Configuration Process

5.1 Establish Secure Configurations

This can be accomplished by either mounting tmpfs to /tmp, or creating a separate

Since the /tmp directory is intended to be world-writable, there is a risk of resource

# mount | grep -E '\s/tmp\s'

tmpfs on /tmp type tmpfs (rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,relatime)

# grep -E '\s/tmp\s' /etc/fstab | grep -E -v '^\s*#'

tmpfs /tmp tmpfs defaults,noexec,nosuid,nodev 0 0

# systemctl is-enabled tmp.mount

tmpfs /tmp tmpfs defaults,rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,relatime 0 0

Run the following command to remount /tmp

# mount -o remount,noexec,nodev,nosuid /tmp

OR if systemd tmp.mount file is used:

Edit the file /etc/systemd/system/tmp.mount:

Run the following command to unmask and start tmp.mount:

# systemctl unmask tmp.mount