The Photon operating system must store only encrypted representations of passwords.
Severity | Group ID | Group Title | Version | Rule ID | Date | STIG Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| medium | V-256585 | SRG-OS-000073-GPOS-00041 | PHTN-30-000117 | SV-256585r982199_rule | 2024-12-16 | 1 |
| Description |
|---|
| Passwords must be protected at all times via strong, one-way encryption. If passwords are not encrypted, they can be plainly read (i.e., clear text) and easily compromised. If they are encrypted with a weak cipher, those passwords are much more vulnerable to offline brute-force attacks. |
| ℹ️ Check |
|---|
| At the command line, run the following command: # grep password /etc/pam.d/system-password|grep --color=always "sha512" If the output does not include "sha512", this is a finding. |
| ✔️ Fix |
|---|
| Navigate to and open: /etc/pam.d/system-password Add the argument "sha512" to the "password" line: password required pam_unix.so sha512 shadow try_first_pass Note: On vCenter appliances, the equivalent file must be edited under "/etc/applmgmt/appliance", if one exists, for the changes to persist after a reboot. |