Check: CISR-ND-000057
Cisco IOS XE Release 3 NDM STIG:
CISR-ND-000057
(in versions v1 r5 through v1 r4)
Title
If multifactor authentication is not supported and passwords must be used, the Cisco IOS XE router must enforce password complexity by requiring that at least one upper-case character be used. (Cat II impact)
Discussion
Use of a complex passwords 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. Password complexity is one factor of several that determine how long it takes to crack a password. The more complex the password is, the greater the number of possible combinations that need to be tested before the password is compromised.
Check Content
Verify that the Cisco IOS XE router is configured to use complex passwords. The configuration should look similar to the example below: aaa common-criteria policy PASSWORD_POLICY min-length 15 upper-case 1 If the use of complex passwords is not configured, this is a finding.
Fix Text
Use the following commands to configure password complexity: aaa common-criteria policy PASSWORD_POLICY min-length 15 upper-case 1
Additional Identifiers
Rule ID: SV-88687r2_rule
Vulnerability ID: V-74013
Group Title: SRG-APP-000166-NDM-000254
Expert Comments
CCIs
Number | Definition |
---|---|
CCI-000192 |
The information system enforces password complexity by the minimum number of upper case characters used. |
Controls
Number | Title |
---|---|
IA-5 (1) |
Password-Based Authentication |