OL 9 /etc/shadow- file must have mode 0000 or less permissive to prevent unauthorized access.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-271816	OL09-00-002554	SV-271816r1092160_rule		Medium

Description

The "/etc/shadow-" file is a backup file of "/etc/shadow", and as such, contains the list of local system accounts and password hashes. 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-75866r1092158_chk)

Verify that OL 9 configures the "/etc/shadow-" file to have a mode of "0000" with the following command:

$ stat -c "%a %n" /etc/shadow-
0 /etc/shadow-

If a value of "0" is not returned, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-75773r1092159_fix)

Change the mode of the file "/etc/shadow-" to "0000" by running the following command:

$ sudo chmod 0000 /etc/shadow-