OL 9 /etc/passwd- file must be owned by root.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-271809	OL09-00-002547	SV-271809r1092139_rule		Medium

Description

The "/etc/passwd-" file is a backup file of "/etc/passwd", and as such, contains information about the users that are configured on the system. Protection of this file is critical for system security.

STIG	Date
Oracle Linux 9 Security Technical Implementation Guide	2025-05-08

Details

Check Text (C-75859r1092137_chk)

Verify that OL 9 configures ownership of the "/etc/passwd-" file with the following command:

$ stat -c "%U %n" /etc/passwd-
root /etc/passwd-

If "/etc/passwd-" file does not have an owner of "root", this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-75766r1092138_fix)

Change the owner of the file /etc/passwd- to root by running the following command:

$ sudo chown root /etc/passwd-