AlmaLinux OS 9 must maintain an account lock until the locked account is manually released by an administrator; and not automatically after a set time.
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-269153 | ALMA-09-008160 | SV-269153r1050035_rule | Medium |
| Description |
| By limiting the number of failed logon attempts, the risk of unauthorized system access via user password guessing, otherwise known as brute-force attacks, is reduced. Limits are imposed by locking the account. |
| STIG | Date |
| CloudLinux AlmaLinux OS 9 Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2025-05-22 |
Details
| Check Text (C-73184r1049215_chk) |
| Verify AlmaLinux OS 9 is configured to lock an account until released by an administrator after three unsuccessful logon attempts with the command: $ grep unlock_time /etc/security/faillock.conf unlock_time = 0 If the "unlock_time" option is not set to "0", the line is missing, or is commented out, this is a finding. |
| Fix Text (F-73085r1049216_fix) |
| Configure AlmaLinux OS 9 to lock accounts until released by an administrator using pam_faillock. First, enable the feature using the following command: $ authselect enable-feature with-faillock Then, add or uncomment the following line in the "/etc/security/faillock.conf" file: unlock_time = 0 |