Details
Record events affecting the group, passwd (user IDs), shadow and gshadow (passwords) or
/etc/security/opasswd (old passwords, based on remember parameter in the PAM
configuration) files. The parameters in this section will watch the files to see if they have
been opened for write or have had attribute changes (e.g. permissions) and tag them with
the identifier ‘identity’ in the audit log file.
*Rationale*
Unexpected changes to these files could be an indication that the system has been
compromised and that an unauthorized user is attempting to hide their activities or
compromise additional accounts.
Solution
Add the following lines to the /etc/audit/audit.rules file.-w /etc/group -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/passwd -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/gshadow -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/shadow -p wa -k identity
-w /etc/security/opasswd -p wa -k identity
# Execute the following command to restart auditd
# pkill -P 1-HUP auditd
Supportive Information
The following resource is also helpful.
This security hardening control applies to the following category of controls within NIST 800-53: Audit and Accountability.This control applies to the following type of system Unix.