Title

The VMM must notify the system administrator (SA) and information system security officer (ISSO) when accounts are modified. (Cat II impact)

Discussion

Once an attacker establishes access to a system, the attacker often attempts to create a persistent method of reestablishing access. One way to accomplish this is for the attacker to simply modify an existing account. Notification of account modification is one method for mitigating this risk. A comprehensive account management process will ensure an audit trail that documents the creation of VMM user accounts and notifies the system administrator and ISSO that it exists. Such a process greatly reduces the risk that accounts will be surreptitiously created and provides logging that can be used for forensic purposes. To address access requirements, many VMMs can be integrated with enterprise-level authentication/access/auditing mechanisms that meet or exceed access control policy requirements.

Check Content

Verify the VMM notifies the SA and ISSO when accounts are modified. If it does not, this is a finding.

Fix Text

Configure the VMM to notify the SA and ISSO when accounts are modified.

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-207428r984225_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-207428

Group Title: SRG-OS-000275

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

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