Vulnerability Discussion

Any password, no matter how complex, can eventually be cracked; therefore, passwords need to be changed periodically. If RHEL 10 does not limit the lifetime of passwords and force users to change their passwords, there is the risk that RHEL 10 passwords could be compromised.

Check

Verify RHEL 10 enforces a 180-day maximum time period for existing user account passwords with the following commands:

$ sudo awk -F: '$5 > 180 {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 RHEL 10 to enforce a 180-day maximum password lifetime restriction on user account passwords.

Set the 180-day maximum password lifetime restriction with the following command:

$ sudo passwd -x 180 [user]