Browser must retain history on exit.

Severity	Group ID	Group Title	Version	Rule ID	Date	STIG Version
medium	V-223126	SRG-APP-000089	DTBI760-IE11	SV-223126r879559_rule	2023-12-01	2

Description
Delete Browsing History on exit automatically deletes specified items when the last browser window closes. Disabling this function will prevent users from deleting their browsing history, which could be used to identify malicious websites and files that could later be used for anti-virus and Intrusion Detection System (IDS) signatures. Furthermore, preventing users from deleting browsing history could be used to identify abusive web surfing on government systems.

Description

Delete Browsing History on exit automatically deletes specified items when the last browser window closes. Disabling this function will prevent users from deleting their browsing history, which could be used to identify malicious websites and files that could later be used for anti-virus and Intrusion Detection System (IDS) signatures. Furthermore, preventing users from deleting browsing history could be used to identify abusive web surfing on government systems.

ℹ️ Check
The policy value for Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Internet Explorer -> Delete Browsing History -> 'Allow deleting browsing history on exit' must be 'Disabled'. Procedure: Use the Windows Registry Editor to navigate to the following key: HKLM\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Privacy Criteria: If the value "ClearBrowsingHistoryOnExit" is REG_DWORD = 0, this is not a finding.

ℹ️ Check

The policy value for Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Internet Explorer -> Delete Browsing History -> 'Allow deleting browsing history on exit' must be 'Disabled'. Procedure: Use the Windows Registry Editor to navigate to the following key: HKLM\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Privacy Criteria: If the value "ClearBrowsingHistoryOnExit" is REG_DWORD = 0, this is not a finding.

✔️ Fix
Set the policy value for Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Internet Explorer -> Delete Browsing History -> 'Allow deleting browsing history on exit' to 'Disabled'.