The /etc/shadow file (or equivalent) must be group-owned by root, bin, or sys.

From SOLARIS 10 X86 SECURITY TECHNICAL IMPLEMENTATION GUIDE

Associated with IA controls: ECLP-1

Associated with: CCI-000225

SV-39900r1_rule The /etc/shadow file (or equivalent) must be group-owned by root, bin, or sys.

Vulnerability discussion

The /etc/shadow file contains the list of local system accounts. It is vital to system security and must be protected from unauthorized modification. The file also contains password hashes which must not be accessible to users other than root.

Check content

Check the ownership of the /etc/shadow file. Procedure: # ls -lL /etc/shadow If the file is not group-owned by root, bin, or sys, this is a finding.

Fix text

Change the group owner of the /etc/shadow file. Procedure: # chgrp root /etc/shadow

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