AIX must not have accounts configured with blank or null passwords.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-215197	AIX7-00-001038	SV-215197r991591_rule		High

Description

If an account is configured for password authentication but does not have an assigned password, it may be possible to log into the account without authentication. If the root user is configured without a password, the entire system may be compromised. For user accounts not using password authentication, the account must be configured with a password lock value instead of a blank or null value.

STIG	Date
IBM AIX 7.x Security Technical Implementation Guide	2024-08-16

Details

Check Text (C-16395r294042_chk)

Verify no interactive accounts have blank passwords by running the following command:
# pwdck -n ALL

If any interactive account with a blank password is found, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-16393r294043_fix)

Configure a password for any interactive account with a blank password by running the following command:
# passwd [user_name]