Title

The SUSE operating system must prevent the use of dictionary words for passwords. (Cat II impact)

Discussion

If the SUSE operating system allows the user to select passwords based on dictionary words, this increases the chances of password compromise by increasing the opportunity for successful guesses and brute-force attacks.

Check Content

Verify the SUSE operating system prevents the use of dictionary words for passwords. Check that the SUSE operating system prevents the use of dictionary words for passwords with the following command: # grep pam_cracklib.so /etc/pam.d/common-password password requisite pam_cracklib.so retry=3 If the command does not return anything, or the returned line is commented out, this is a finding. If the value of "retry" is greater than 3, this is a finding.

Fix Text

Configure the SUSE operating system to prevent the use of dictionary words for passwords. Edit "/etc/pam.d/common-password" and add the following line: password requisite pam_cracklib.so retry=3

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-217134r991587_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-217134

Group Title: SRG-OS-000480-GPOS-00225

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

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