Ubuntu 22.04 LTS must not allow unattended or automatic login via SSH.
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-260526 | UBTU-22-255025 | SV-260526r991591_rule | High |
| Description |
| Failure to restrict system access to authenticated users negatively impacts Ubuntu 22.04 LTS security. |
| STIG | Date |
| Canonical Ubuntu 22.04 LTS Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2025-05-16 |
Details
| Check Text (C-64255r953389_chk) |
| Verify that unattended or automatic login via SSH is disabled by using the following command: $ sudo /usr/sbin/sshd -dd 2>&1 | awk '/filename/ {print $4}' | tr -d '\r' | tr '\n' ' ' | xargs sudo grep -iEH '(permit(.*?)(passwords|environment))' /etc/ssh/sshd_config:PermitEmptyPasswords no /etc/ssh/sshd_config:PermitUserEnvironment no If "PermitEmptyPasswords" and "PermitUserEnvironment" are not set to "no", are commented out, are missing, or conflicting results are returned, this is a finding. |
| Fix Text (F-64163r953390_fix) |
| Configure the SSH server to not allow unattended or automatic login to the system. Add or modify the following lines in the "/etc/ssh/sshd_config" file: PermitEmptyPasswords no PermitUserEnvironment no Restart the SSH daemon for the changes to take effect: $ sudo systemctl restart sshd.service |