AlmaLinux OS 9 must disable the kernel.core_pattern.
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-269182 | ALMA-09-011680 | SV-269182r1050064_rule | CCI-000366 | medium |
| Description | ||||
| A core dump includes a memory image taken at the time the operating system terminates an application. The memory image could contain sensitive data and is generally useful only for developers trying to debug problems. | ||||
| STIG | Date | |||
| CloudLinux AlmaLinux OS 9 Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2025-05-22 | |||
Details
Check Text (C-269182r1050064_chk)
Verify AlmaLinux OS 9 disables storing core dumps with the following commands:
$ sysctl kernel.core_pattern
kernel.core_pattern = |/bin/false
If the returned line does not have a value of "|/bin/false", or a line is not returned and the need for core dumps is not documented with the information system security officer (ISSO) as an operational requirement, this is a finding.
Check that the configuration files are present to disable core dump storage.
$ /usr/lib/systemd/systemd-sysctl --cat-config | egrep -v '^(#|;)' | grep -F kernel.core_pattern | tail -1
kernel.core_pattern = |/bin/false
If "kernel.core_pattern" is not set to "|/bin/false" and is not documented with the ISSO as an operational requirement, or is missing, this is a finding.
Fix Text (F-73114r1049274_fix)
Configure AlmaLinux OS 9 to disable storing core dumps.
Create a numbered *.conf file in /etc/sysctl.d/ with the following content:
kernel.core_pattern = |/bin/false
The system configuration files need to be reloaded for the changes to take effect. To reload the contents of the files, run the following command:
$ sysctl –system