RHEL 9 /etc/passwd file must be group-owned by root.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-257907	RHEL-09-232135	SV-257907r925708_rule		Medium

Description
The "/etc/passwd" file contains information about the users that are configured on the system. Protection of this file is critical for system security.

STIG	Date
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 Security Technical Implementation Guide	2023-12-01

Details

Check Text ( C-61648r925706_chk )
Verify the group ownership of the "/etc/passwd" file with the following command: $ sudo stat -c "%G %n" /etc/passwd root /etc/passwd If "/etc/passwd" file does not have a group owner of "root", this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-61572r925707_fix)
Change the group of the file /etc/passwd to root by running the following command: $ sudo chgrp root /etc/passwd