Title

Standard user accounts will only have Read permissions to the Winlogon registry key. (Cat I impact)

Discussion

Permissions on the Winlogon registry key should only allow privileged accounts to change registry values. If standard users have this capability there is a potential for programs to run with elevated privileges when a privileged user logs on to the system.

Check Content

Navigate to the following registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon. Verify the permissions assigned. Standard user accounts and groups will only have Read permissions to this registry key. If any standard user accounts or groups have greater permissions, this is a finding. The default permissions satisfy this requirement.

Fix Text

Assign only Read permissions for standard user accounts and groups to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon registry key. This is the default configuration.

Additional Identifiers

Rule ID: SV-32726r1_rule

Vulnerability ID: V-26070

Group Title: Winlogon Registry Permissions

Expert Comments

CCIs tied to check.

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