The Photon operating system must enforce password complexity by requiring that at least one special character be used.
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-256524 | PHTN-30-000050 | SV-256524r991561_rule | Medium |
| Description |
| Use of a complex password helps to increase the time and resources required to compromise the password. Password complexity, or strength, is a measure of the effectiveness of a password in resisting attempts at guessing and brute-force attacks. |
| STIG | Date |
| VMware vSphere 7.0 vCenter Appliance Photon OS Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2024-12-16 |
Details
| Check Text (C-60199r887244_chk) |
| At the command line, run the following command: # grep pam_cracklib /etc/pam.d/system-password|grep --color=always "ocredit=.." Expected result: password requisite pam_cracklib.so dcredit=-1 ucredit=-1 lcredit=-1 ocredit=-1 minlen=8 minclass=4 difok=4 retry=3 maxsequence=0 enforce_for_root If the output does not include ocredit= <= -1, this is a finding. |
| Fix Text (F-60142r887245_fix) |
| Navigate to and open: /etc/pam.d/system-password Add the following, replacing any existing "pam_cracklib.so" line: password requisite pam_cracklib.so dcredit=-1 ucredit=-1 lcredit=-1 ocredit=-1 minlen=8 minclass=4 difok=4 retry=3 maxsequence=0 enforce_for_root Note: On vCenter appliances, the equivalent file must be edited under "/etc/applmgmt/appliance", if one exists, for the changes to persist after a reboot. |