RHEL 8 passwords for new users must have a minimum of 15 characters.
Severity | Group ID | Group Title | Version | Rule ID | Date | STIG Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| medium | V-230370 | SRG-OS-000078-GPOS-00046 | RHEL-08-020231 | SV-230370r1017182_rule | 2025-03-26 | 2 |
| Description |
|---|
| The shorter the password, the lower the number of possible combinations that need to be tested before the password is compromised. Password complexity, or strength, is a measure of the effectiveness of a password in resisting attempts at guessing and brute-force attacks. Password length is one factor of several that helps to determine strength and how long it takes to crack a password. Use of more characters in a password helps to increase exponentially the time and/or resources required to compromise the password. The DoD minimum password requirement is 15 characters. |
| ℹ️ Check |
|---|
| Verify that RHEL 8 enforces a minimum 15-character password length for new user accounts by running the following command: $ sudo grep -i pass_min_len /etc/login.defs PASS_MIN_LEN 15 If the "PASS_MIN_LEN" parameter value is less than "15", or commented out, this is a finding. |
| ✔️ Fix |
|---|
| Configure operating system to enforce a minimum 15-character password length for new user accounts. Add, or modify the following line in the "/etc/login.defs" file: PASS_MIN_LEN 15 |