IT Best Practices Tip: nist_V-38449

Severity: medium

Short Description

The /etc/gshadow file must have mode 0000.

Long Description

The /etc/gshadow file contains group password hashes. Protection of this file is critical for system security.

How to Check Correct Configuration

To check the permissions of "/etc/gshadow", run the command:

$ ls -l /etc/gshadow

If properly configured, the output should indicate the following permissions: "----------"
If it does not, this is a finding.

How to Fix

To properly set the permissions of "/etc/gshadow", run the command:

# chmod 0000 /etc/gshadow