Title

The SharePoint setup user domain account must be configured with the minimum privileges in Active Directory. (Cat II impact)

Discussion

Separation of duties is a prevalent Information Technology control implemented at different layers of the information system including the operating system and in applications. It serves to eliminate or reduce the possibility that a single user may carry out a prohibited action. Separation of duties requires the person accountable for approving an action not be the same person tasked with implementing the action. This requirement is intended to limit exposure due to users (or entities acting on behalf of users) being used to operate from within a privileged account or role. Limiting the access and permissions of privileged accounts to the minimum required, reduces exposure if the account is compromised and provides forensic history of activity when operating from these accounts. See TechNet Article cc678863 for information regarding required permission. The setup user administrator account is used during initial creation of the farm, to update the farm servers, and to configure certain farm configuration option. The setup user administrator account should be limited to membership in the Domain Users group in Active Directory.

Check Content

1. Navigate to Active Directory Users and Computers -> Users. 2. Double click on the account to view the account properties. 3. Select the Members of tab and verify this account is a member of the Domain Users group only. 4. Mark as a finding if the Setup User account is a member of other Active Directory domain groups other than Domain Users. Mark as a finding if the Setup User account has unneeded permissions or services assigned.

Fix Text

Ensure the Setup User domain user has minimum permissions in Active Directory. 1. Navigate to Active Directory Users and Computers -> Users. 2. Double click on the account to view the account properties. 3. Select the Members of tab to view group membership for this account. 4. Remove this account from membership in groups other than Domain Users.

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-38299r2_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-29399

Group Title:

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

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