Title

The IBM z/VM CA VM:Secure password User Exit must enforce a minimum 8-character password length. (Cat II impact)

Discussion

The shorter the password, the lower the number of possible combinations that need to be tested before the password is compromised. Password complexity, or strength, is a measure of the effectiveness of a password in resisting attempts at guessing and brute-force attacks. Password length is one factor of several that helps to determine strength and how long it takes to crack a password. Use of more characters in a password helps to exponentially increase the time and/or resources required to compromise the password.

Check Content

If there is no VM:Secure Password exit in use, this is a finding. Review the VM:Secure Password exit. If there is no code that enforces a minimum 8-character password, this is a finding.

Fix Text

Configure a VM:Secure Password exit that enforces a minimum 8-character password length. Ensure that the following macros are updated with proper PASSWORD user exit: FORCEPWC VMXCHGPW MAINT USE00080

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID:

Vulnerability ID: IBMZ-VM-000520

Group Title:

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

Controls tied to check. These are derived from the CCIs shown above.