All RHEL 9 local initialization files must have mode 0740 or less permissive.
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-257889 | RHEL-09-232045 | SV-257889r1044959_rule | CCI-000366 | medium |
| Description | ||||
| Local initialization files are used to configure the user's shell environment upon logon. Malicious modification of these files could compromise accounts upon logon. | ||||
| STIG | Date | |||
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2025-05-14 | |||
Details
Check Text (C-257889r1044959_chk)
Verify that all local initialization files have a mode of "0740" or less permissive with the following command:
Note: The example will be for the "bingwa" user, who has a home directory of "/home/bingwa".
$ find /home/bingwa/.[^.]* -maxdepth 0 -perm -740 -exec stat -c "%a %n" {} \; | more
755 /home/bingwa/.somepermissivefile
If any local initialization files are returned, this indicates a mode more permissive than "0740", and this is a finding.
Fix Text (F-61554r925653_fix)
Set the mode of the local initialization files to "0740" with the following command:
Note: The example will be for the wadea user, who has a home directory of "/home/wadea".
$ sudo chmod 0740 /home/wadea/.<INIT_FILE>