Tomcat user account must be a non-privileged user.
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-222984 | TCAT-AS-001060 | SV-222984r961353_rule | CCI-002235 | medium |
| Description | ||||
| Use a distinct non-privileged user account for running Tomcat. If Tomcat processes are compromised and a privileged user account is used to operate the Tomcat server processes, the entire system becomes compromised. Sample passwd file: tomcat:x:1001:1001::/opt/tomcat/usr/sbin/nologin The user ID is stored in field 3 of the passwd file. | ||||
| STIG | Date | |||
| Apache Tomcat Application Server 9 Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2025-02-11 | |||
Details
Check Text (C-222984r961353_chk)
Run the following command to identify the Tomcat process UID:
ps -ef | { head -1; grep catalina; } | cut -f1 -d" "
Run the following command to obtain the OS user ID tied to the Tomcat process:
cat /etc/passwd|grep -i <UID>|cut -f3 -d:
Unless operationally necessary, the Tomcat process should not be tied to a privileged OS user ID. Depending on the operating system, privileged OS user IDs will typically be assigned user ID values <500 or <1000.
If the Tomcat process is running as a privileged user and is not documented and approved, this is a finding.
If the user ID field of the passwd file is set to 0, this is a finding.
Fix Text (F-24645r426397_fix)
From the Tomcat server, create a tomcat user by adding a new non-privileged user OS account with the following command:
sudo useradd tomcat
Edit the systemd tomcat.service file or create one if it does not exist. Use the new "tomcat" user account by setting; USER=tomcat
Location of the file should be /etc/systemd/system/tomcat.service.
Enable the Tomcat service:
sudo restorecon /etc/systemd/system/tomcat.service
sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/tomcat.service
sudo systemctl enable tomcat.service
Start Tomcat:
sudo systemctl start tomcat