The F5 BIG-IP appliance providing user access control intermediary services must enforce approved authorizations for logical access to information and system resources by employing identity-based, role-based, and/or attribute-based security policies.

Severity	Group ID	Group Title	Version	Rule ID	Date	STIG Version
high	V-266143	SRG-NET-000015-ALG-000016	F5BI-AP-300012	SV-266143r1024370_rule	2024-09-20	1

Description
Successful authentication must not automatically give an entity access to an asset or security boundary. The lack of authorization-based access control could result in the immediate compromise of and unauthorized access to sensitive information. All DOD systems must be properly configured to incorporate access control methods that do not rely solely on authentication for authorized access. Authorization is the process of determining whether an entity, once authenticated, is permitted to access a specific asset. Information systems use access control policies and enforcement mechanisms to implement this requirement. Authorization procedures and controls must be implemented to ensure each authenticated entity also has a validated and current authorization. Access control policies include identity-based policies, role-based policies, and attribute-based policies. Access enforcement mechanisms include access control lists, access control matrices, and cryptography. ALGs must use these policies and mechanisms to control access on behalf of the application for which it is acting as intermediary.

Description

Successful authentication must not automatically give an entity access to an asset or security boundary. The lack of authorization-based access control could result in the immediate compromise of and unauthorized access to sensitive information. All DOD systems must be properly configured to incorporate access control methods that do not rely solely on authentication for authorized access. Authorization is the process of determining whether an entity, once authenticated, is permitted to access a specific asset. Information systems use access control policies and enforcement mechanisms to implement this requirement. Authorization procedures and controls must be implemented to ensure each authenticated entity also has a validated and current authorization. Access control policies include identity-based policies, role-based policies, and attribute-based policies. Access enforcement mechanisms include access control lists, access control matrices, and cryptography. ALGs must use these policies and mechanisms to control access on behalf of the application for which it is acting as intermediary.

ℹ️ Check
If the BIG-IP appliance does not provide user access control intermediary services, this is not applicable. If Advanced Resource Assign VPE agent is not used in any policy, this is not a finding. From the BIG-IP GUI: 1. Access. 2. Profiles/Policies. 3. Access Profiles. 4. Click "Edit" under "Per-Session Policy" for the Access Profile. 5. Review each Resource. - If the Advanced Resource Assign agent is used, verify that each expression listed is explicitly configured to use an authorization list. If the Big IP F5 appliance Access Policy has any assigned resources that are not configured with a specific authorization list, this is a finding.

ℹ️ Check

If the BIG-IP appliance does not provide user access control intermediary services, this is not applicable. If Advanced Resource Assign VPE agent is not used in any policy, this is not a finding. From the BIG-IP GUI: 1. Access. 2. Profiles/Policies. 3. Access Profiles. 4. Click "Edit" under "Per-Session Policy" for the Access Profile. 5. Review each Resource. - If the Advanced Resource Assign agent is used, verify that each expression listed is explicitly configured to use an authorization list. If the Big IP F5 appliance Access Policy has any assigned resources that are not configured with a specific authorization list, this is a finding.

✔️ Fix
For each APM Access Policy, ensure that for each resource, all Advanced Resource Assign agents used in the configuration are explicitly configured to use an authorization list. From the BIG-IP GUI: 1. Access. 2. Profiles/Policies. 3. Access Profiles. 4. Click "Edit" under "Per-Session Policy" for the Access Profile. 5. Click on any items that use the Advanced Resource Assign VPE object. 6. For each entry with an expression that is "Empty", click "change". 7. Add an appropriate expression that validates the user's authorization to access the resource specified in the item. 8. Click "Finished". 9. Click "Save". 10. Click "Apply Access Policy".

✔️ Fix

For each APM Access Policy, ensure that for each resource, all Advanced Resource Assign agents used in the configuration are explicitly configured to use an authorization list. From the BIG-IP GUI: 1. Access. 2. Profiles/Policies. 3. Access Profiles. 4. Click "Edit" under "Per-Session Policy" for the Access Profile. 5. Click on any items that use the Advanced Resource Assign VPE object. 6. For each entry with an expression that is "Empty", click "change". 7. Add an appropriate expression that validates the user's authorization to access the resource specified in the item. 8. Click "Finished". 9. Click "Save". 10. Click "Apply Access Policy".