The ESXi host must enforce password complexity by configuring a password quality policy.
Overview
| Finding ID | Version | Rule ID | IA Controls | Severity |
| V-258734 | ESXI-80-000035 | SV-258734r933263_rule | CCI-000192 | medium |
| Description | ||||
| To enforce the use of complex passwords, minimum numbers of characters of different classes are mandated. The use of complex passwords reduces the ability of attackers to successfully obtain valid passwords using guessing or exhaustive search techniques. Complexity requirements increase the password search space by requiring users to construct passwords from a larger character set than they may otherwise use. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000069-VMM-000360, SRG-OS-000070-VMM-000370, SRG-OS-000071-VMM-000380, SRG-OS-000072-VMM-000390, SRG-OS-000072-VMM-000390, SRG-OS-000078-VMM-000450, SRG-OS-000266-VMM-000940 | ||||
| STIG | Date | |||
| VMware vSphere 8.0 ESXi Security Technical Implementation Guide | 2023-10-11 | |||
Related Frameworks
6 paths across 3 frameworks
Related Frameworks
NIST 800-531 mapping
IA-5(1)
1.00
- DISA · V1R1 · disa_xccdf · related
- DISA · 2025-01-23 · disa_cci_list · equivalent
NIST 800-1714 mappings
3.5.10
1.00
- DISA · V1R1 · disa_xccdf · related
- DISA · 2025-01-23 · disa_cci_list · equivalent
- NIST · Rev 2 (Feb 2020, errata Jan 2021) · nist_800_171_app_d · equivalent
3.5.7
1.00
- DISA · V1R1 · disa_xccdf · related
- DISA · 2025-01-23 · disa_cci_list · equivalent
- NIST · Rev 2 (Feb 2020, errata Jan 2021) · nist_800_171_app_d · equivalent
3.5.8
1.00
- DISA · V1R1 · disa_xccdf · related
- DISA · 2025-01-23 · disa_cci_list · equivalent
- NIST · Rev 2 (Feb 2020, errata Jan 2021) · nist_800_171_app_d · equivalent
3.5.9
1.00
- DISA · V1R1 · disa_xccdf · related
- DISA · 2025-01-23 · disa_cci_list · equivalent
- NIST · Rev 2 (Feb 2020, errata Jan 2021) · nist_800_171_app_d · equivalent
CCI1 mapping
CCI-000192
1.00
- DISA · V1R1 · disa_xccdf · related
Details
Check Text (C-258734r933263_chk)
From the vSphere Client, go to Hosts and Clusters.
Select the ESXi Host >> Configure >> System >> Advanced System Settings.
Select the "Security.PasswordQualityControl" value and verify it is set to "similar=deny retry=3 min=disabled,disabled,disabled,disabled,15".
or
From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host, run the following command:
Get-VMHost | Get-AdvancedSetting -Name Security.PasswordQualityControl
If the "Security.PasswordQualityControl" setting is set to a value other than "similar=deny retry=3 min=disabled,disabled,disabled,disabled,15", this is a finding.
Fix Text (F-62383r933262_fix)
From the vSphere Client, go to Hosts and Clusters.
Select the ESXi Host >> Configure >> System >> Advanced System Settings.
Click "Edit". Select the "Security.PasswordQualityControl" value and configure it to "similar=deny retry=3 min=disabled,disabled,disabled,disabled,15".
or
From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host, run the following command:
Get-VMHost | Get-AdvancedSetting -Name Security.PasswordQualityControl | Set-AdvancedSetting -Value "similar=deny retry=3 min=disabled,disabled,disabled,disabled,15"