RHEL 10 must be configured so that the "/etc/passwd" file is group-owned by "root".
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-281026 | RHEL-10-400045 | SV-281026r1165433_rule | CCI-000213 | 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 10 Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2026-03-11 | |||
Details
Check Text (C-281026r1165433_chk)
Verify RHEL 10 is configured so that the "/etc/passwd" file is group-owned by "root" with the following command:
$ sudo stat -c "%G %n" /etc/passwd
root /etc/passwd
If the "/etc/passwd" file does not have a group owner of "root", this is a finding.
Fix Text (F-85492r1165432_fix)
Configure RHEL 10 so that the group of the "/etc/passwd" file is set to "root" by running the following command:
$ sudo chgrp root /etc/passwd