Vulnerability Discussion

If OL 8 allows the user to select passwords based on dictionary words, this increases the chances of password compromise by increasing the opportunity for successful guesses and brute-force attacks.

Check

Verify OL 8 prevents the use of dictionary words for passwords.

Determine if the field "dictcheck" is set in the "/etc/security/pwquality.conf" or "/etc/security/pwquality.conf.d/*.conf" files with the following command:

$ sudo grep dictcheck /etc/security/pwquality.conf /etc/security/pwquality.conf.d/*.conf

/etc/security/pwquality.conf:dictcheck=1

If the "dictcheck" parameter is not set to "1" or is commented out, this is a finding.

Fix

Configure OL 8 to prevent the use of dictionary words for passwords.

Add or update the following line in the "/etc/security/pwquality.conf" file or a configuration file in the "/etc/security/pwquality.conf.d/" directory:

dictcheck=1