Title

The SUSE operating system wireless network adapters must be disabled unless approved and documented. (Cat II impact)

Discussion

Without protection of communications with wireless peripherals, confidentiality and integrity may be compromised because unprotected communications can be intercepted and either read, altered, or used to compromise the SUSE operating system. This requirement applies to wireless peripheral technologies (e.g., wireless mice, keyboards, displays, etc.) used with A SUSE operating system. Wireless peripherals (e.g., Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/IR Keyboards, Mice, and Pointing Devices and Near Field Communications [NFC]) present a unique challenge by creating an open, unsecured port on a computer. Wireless peripherals must meet DoD requirements for wireless data transmission and be approved for use by the AO. Even though some wireless peripherals, such as mice and pointing devices, do not ordinarily carry information that need to be protected, modification of communications with these wireless peripherals may be used to compromise the SUSE operating system. Communication paths outside the physical protection of a controlled boundary are exposed to the possibility of interception and modification. Protecting the confidentiality and integrity of communications with wireless peripherals can be accomplished by physical means (e.g., employing physical barriers to wireless radio frequencies) or by logical means (e.g., employing cryptographic techniques). If physical means of protection are employed, then logical means (cryptography) do not have to be employed, and vice versa. If the wireless peripheral is only passing telemetry data, encryption of the data may not be required. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000299-GPOS-00117, SRG-OS-000300-GPOS-00118, SRG-OS-000481-GPOS-000481

Check Content

Verify that the SUSE operating system has no wireless network adapters enabled. Check that there are no wireless interfaces configured on the system with the following command: # wicked show all lo up link: #1, state up type: loopback config: compat:suse:/etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-lo leases: ipv4 static granted leases: ipv6 static granted addr: ipv4 127.0.0.1/8 [static] addr: ipv6 ::1/128 [static] eth0 up link: #2, state up, mtu 1500 type: ethernet, hwaddr 06:00:00:00:00:01 config: compat:suse:/etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-eth0 leases: ipv4 dhcp granted leases: ipv6 dhcp granted, ipv6 auto granted addr: ipv4 10.0.0.100/16 [dhcp] route: ipv4 default via 10.0.0.1 proto dhcp wlan0 up link: #3, state up, mtu 1500 type: wireless, hwaddr 06:00:00:00:00:02 config: wicked:xml:/etc/wicked/ifconfig/wlan0.xml leases: ipv4 dhcp granted addr: ipv4 10.0.0.101/16 [dhcp] route: ipv4 default via 10.0.0.1 proto dhcp If a wireless interface is configured it must be documented and approved by the local Authorizing Official. If a wireless interface is configured and has not been documented and approved, this is a finding.

Fix Text

Configure the SUSE operating system to disable all wireless network interfaces with the following command: For each interface of type wireless, bring the interface into "down" state: # wicked ifdown wlan0 For each interface of type wireless with a configuration of type "compat:suse:", remove the associated file: # rm /etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-wlan0 For each interface of type wireless, for each configuration of type "wicked:xml:", remove the associated file or remove the interface configuration from the file. # rm /etc/wicked/ifconfig/wlan0.xml

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-217298r854164_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-217298

Group Title: SRG-OS-000299-GPOS-00117

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

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