Title

All interactive user home directories defined in the /etc/passwd file must exist. (Cat III impact)

Discussion

If a user has a home directory defined that does not exist, the user may be given the / directory, by default, as the current working directory upon logon. This could create a Denial of Service because the user would not be able to perform useful tasks in this location.

Check Content

Use pwck to verify assigned home directories exist. # pwck If any user's assigned home directory does not exist, this is a finding.

Fix Text

If a user has no home directory, determine why. If possible, delete accounts without a home directory. If the account is valid, then create the home directory using the appropriate system administration utility or manually. For example: # /sbin/yast2 users (<select user> > Edit > Details) OR # mkdir </home/directory> # for i in $(ls -A /etc/skel); do cp -rp /etc/skel/$i </home/directory>; done # chown -R <user>:<group> </home/directory> Document all changes.

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-45014r1_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-900

Group Title: GEN001460

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

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