Verify Permissions on gshadow File

This page is not yet available in Spanish. We are working on its translation.
If you have any questions or feedback about our current translation project, feel free to reach out to us!

Description

To properly set the permissions of /etc/gshadow, run the command:

$ sudo chmod 0640 /etc/gshadow

Rationale

The /etc/gshadow file contains group password hashes. Protection of this file is critical for system security.

Remediation

Shell script

The following script can be run on the host to remediate the issue.

#!/bin/bash

chmod u-xs,g-xws,o-xwrt /etc/gshadow

Ansible playbook

The following playbook can be run with Ansible to remediate the issue.

- name: Test for existence /etc/gshadow
  stat:
    path: /etc/gshadow
  register: file_exists
  tags:
  - NIST-800-53-AC-6(1)
  - NIST-800-53-CM-6(a)
  - configure_strategy
  - file_permissions_etc_gshadow
  - low_complexity
  - low_disruption
  - medium_severity
  - no_reboot_needed

- name: Ensure permission u-xs,g-xws,o-xwrt on /etc/gshadow
  file:
    path: /etc/gshadow
    mode: u-xs,g-xws,o-xwrt
  when: file_exists.stat is defined and file_exists.stat.exists
  tags:
  - NIST-800-53-AC-6(1)
  - NIST-800-53-CM-6(a)
  - configure_strategy
  - file_permissions_etc_gshadow
  - low_complexity
  - low_disruption
  - medium_severity
  - no_reboot_needed