Disable SSH Root Login

Description

The root user should never be allowed to login to a system directly over a network. To disable root login via SSH, add or correct the following line in

/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf:

PermitRootLogin no

Rationale

Even though the communications channel may be encrypted, an additional layer of security is gained by extending the policy of not logging directly on as root. In addition, logging in with a user-specific account provides individual accountability of actions performed on the system and also helps to minimize direct attack attempts on root’s password.

Remediation

Shell script

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

#!/bin/bash

# Remediation is applicable only in certain platforms
if [ ! -f /.dockerenv ] && [ ! -f /run/.containerenv ]; then

mkdir -p /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d
touch /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf

LC_ALL=C sed -i "/^\s*PermitRootLogin\s\+/Id" "/etc/ssh/sshd_config"
LC_ALL=C sed -i "/^\s*PermitRootLogin\s\+/Id" "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d"/*.conf
if [ -e "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf" ] ; then
    
    LC_ALL=C sed -i "/^\s*PermitRootLogin\s\+/Id" "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf"
else
    touch "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf"
fi
# make sure file has newline at the end
sed -i -e '$a\' "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf"

cp "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf" "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf.bak"
# Insert at the beginning of the file
printf '%s\n' "PermitRootLogin no" > "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf"
cat "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf.bak" >> "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf"
# Clean up after ourselves.
rm "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf.bak"

else
    >&2 echo 'Remediation is not applicable, nothing was done'
fi

Ansible playbook

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

- name: Disable SSH Root Login
  block:

  - name: Deduplicate values from /etc/ssh/sshd_config
    lineinfile:
      path: /etc/ssh/sshd_config
      create: false
      regexp: (?i)^\s*{{ "PermitRootLogin"| regex_escape }}\s+
      state: absent

  - name: Check if /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d exists
    stat:
      path: /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d
    register: _etc_ssh_sshd_config_d_exists

  - name: Check if the parameter PermitRootLogin is present in /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d
    find:
      paths: /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d
      recurse: 'yes'
      follow: 'no'
      contains: (?i)^\s*{{ "PermitRootLogin"| regex_escape }}\s+
    register: _etc_ssh_sshd_config_d_has_parameter
    when: _etc_ssh_sshd_config_d_exists.stat.isdir is defined and _etc_ssh_sshd_config_d_exists.stat.isdir

  - name: Remove parameter from files in /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d
    lineinfile:
      path: '{{ item.path }}'
      create: false
      regexp: (?i)^\s*{{ "PermitRootLogin"| regex_escape }}\s+
      state: absent
    with_items: '{{ _etc_ssh_sshd_config_d_has_parameter.files }}'
    when: _etc_ssh_sshd_config_d_has_parameter.matched

  - name: Insert correct line to /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf
    lineinfile:
      path: /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/00-complianceascode-hardening.conf
      create: true
      regexp: (?i)^\s*{{ "PermitRootLogin"| regex_escape }}\s+
      line: PermitRootLogin no
      state: present
      insertbefore: BOF
      validate: /usr/sbin/sshd -t -f %s
  when: ansible_virtualization_type not in ["docker", "lxc", "openvz", "podman", "container"]
  tags:
  - CJIS-5.5.6
  - NIST-800-171-3.1.1
  - NIST-800-171-3.1.5
  - NIST-800-53-AC-17(a)
  - NIST-800-53-AC-6(2)
  - NIST-800-53-CM-6(a)
  - NIST-800-53-CM-7(a)
  - NIST-800-53-CM-7(b)
  - NIST-800-53-IA-2
  - NIST-800-53-IA-2(5)
  - PCI-DSS-Req-2.2.4
  - PCI-DSSv4-2.2.6
  - low_complexity
  - low_disruption
  - medium_severity
  - no_reboot_needed
  - restrict_strategy
  - sshd_disable_root_login