Vulnerability Discussion

Any password, no matter how complex, can eventually be cracked; therefore, passwords need to be changed periodically. If OL 9 does not limit the lifetime of passwords and force users to change their passwords, there is the risk that OL 9 passwords could be compromised.

Check

Verify that OL 9 user account passwords have a 60-day maximum password lifetime restriction with the following commands:

$ sudo awk -F: '$5 > 60 {print $1 "" "" $5}' /etc/shadow

$ sudo awk -F: '$5 <= 0 {print $1 "" "" $5}' /etc/shadow

If any results are returned that are not associated with a system account, this is a finding.

Fix

Configure noncompliant accounts to enforce a 60-day maximum password lifetime restriction.

passwd -x 60 [user]