Title

RHEL 8 audit logs must have a mode of 0600 or less permissive to prevent unauthorized read access. (Cat II impact)

Discussion

Only authorized personnel should be aware of errors and the details of the errors. Error messages are an indicator of an organization's operational state or can identify the RHEL 8 system or platform. Additionally, Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and operational information must not be revealed through error messages to unauthorized personnel or their designated representatives. The structure and content of error messages must be carefully considered by the organization and development team. The extent to which the information system is able to identify and handle error conditions is guided by organizational policy and operational requirements. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000057-GPOS-00027, SRG-OS-000058-GPOS-00028, SRG-OS-000059-GPOS-00029, SRG-OS-000206-GPOS-00084

Check Content

Verify the audit logs have a mode of "0600" or less permissive. First, determine where the audit logs are stored with the following command: $ sudo grep -iw log_file /etc/audit/auditd.conf log_file = /var/log/audit/audit.log Using the location of the audit log file, check if the audit log has a mode of "0600" or less permissive with the following command: $ sudo stat -c "%a %n" /var/log/audit/audit.log 600 /var/log/audit/audit.log If the audit log has a mode more permissive than "0600", this is a finding.

Fix Text

Configure the audit log to be protected from unauthorized read access by setting the correct permissive mode with the following command: $ sudo chmod 0600 /var/log/audit/audit.log

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-230396r1017202_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-230396

Group Title: SRG-OS-000057-GPOS-00027

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

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