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The WebSphere Application Server files must be owned by the non-root WebSphere user ID.

Overview

Finding IDVersionRule IDIA ControlsSeverity
V-255857WBSP-AS-000920SV-255857r960963_ruleCCI-000381medium
Description
Having files owned by the root or administrator user is an indication that the WebSphere processes are being run with escalated privileges. Running as root/admin user gives attackers elevated privileges that can be used to compromise the system more easily compared to operating the WebSphere processes with regular user privileges. Specifying a regular OS user when installing and managing WebSphere is best practice. By doing so, the WebSphere files will be owned by the user ID specified rather than being owned by the admin user. Use the underlying OS file permissions to ensure that access to the WebSphere files are restricted to only those users who require access.
STIGDate
IBM WebSphere Traditional V9.x Security Technical Implementation Guide2026-02-26

Related Frameworks

1 mapping across 5 frameworks
SCF0 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 3 hops (2) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

CFG-01Configuration Management Program
1.00
CFG-03Least Functionality
1.00
NIST 800-530 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 2 hops (36) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

AC-11Device Lock
1.00
AC-17(1)Monitoring and Control
1.00
AC-17(10)Authenticate Remote Commands
1.00
AC-17(9)Disconnect or Disable Access
1.00
AC-18(1)Authentication and Encryption
1.00
AC-2(1)Automated System Account Management
1.00
AC-3Access Enforcement
1.00
AC-4Information Flow Enforcement
1.00
AU-12Audit Record Generation
1.00
AU-3Content of Audit Records
1.00

+26 more (top 10 by confidence shown)

NIST 800-1710 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 3 hops (1) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

3.4.6
1.00
CCI1 mapping
CCI-000381
1.00
NIST CSF 2.00 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 3 hops (2) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

PR.PS-01
1.00
PR.PS-05
1.00

Who does this work

5 NICE work roles and 5 EC-Council certifications.

This is an inference across published mappings, not a single claim by anyone. This check maps to a control, which maps to a Cybersecurity Framework outcome, which NIST assigns to the work roles below. EC-Council separately maps its certifications to those same roles.

A certification prepares someone for a role. It is not evidence that a holder is qualified, and neither NIST nor EC-Council has stated that any certification here addresses this check.

Work-role assignments published by NIST (NICE Framework Components 2.2.0 and the CSF 2.0 OLIR crosswalk). Certification mappings published by EC-Council.

Details

Check Text (C-255857r960963_chk)

Review System Security Plan documentation. Interview the system administrator. Determine the OS user and group information associated with the WebSphere processes. Identify the paths, files, and folders associated with the WebSphere installation. These include: - <WAS_HOME>: where you installed WebSphere. <WAS_HOME> default location: For UNIX: /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer For Windows: C:\Program Files\IBM\WebSphere\AppServer - <PROFILE_HOME>: where the appserver instance resides. The default location is under "<WAS_HOME>/profiles". - <OTHER_HOME>: any additional files that may reside outside of <WAS_HOME>. Examples include: - shared library .jar files - Resource Adapter .rar files - Key and trust store files (.jks and .p12) - Other files such as jdbc drivers For Linux, use the command "find <directory> -user root" to find files owned by root user. On windows use the "dir /Q /S" command from the root directories to show the owners of all files. Examine the output for files owned by the administrator or root account. If any WebSphere file or additional files as described above are owned by root or the administrator, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-59473r876861_fix)

Note: executing this fix without proper planning regarding file ownership can render your installation inoperable. See vulnerability discussion before executing this fix. Ensure all WebSphere related files and folders are owned by the WebSphere OS user. Ensure OS group membership is restricted. File ownership changes for UNIX systems: chown -R <user> <WAS_HOME> chown -R <user> <PROFILE_HOME>, chown -R <user> <OTHER_HOME>, <OTHER_HOME> may be zero or more directories for other files Group ownership changes for UNIX systems: chgrp -R <user> <WAS_HOME> chgrp -R <user> <PROFILE_HOME>, chgrp -R <user> <OTHER_HOME>, where <OTHER_HOME> may be zero or more root directories for other files File ownership changes for Windows systems: "takeown /r /u <user> /f <directory /p <password of user>", where the <directory> is <WAS_HOME>, <PROFILE_HOME>, or <OTHER_HOME>