Microsoft Windows Server 2012/2012 R2 Member Server STIG SCAP Benchmark
V003.004R3 2022-09-06       U_MS_Windows_2012_and_2012_R2_MS_V3R4_STIG_SCAP_1-2_Benchmark.xml
This Security Technical Implementation Guide is published as a tool to improve the security of Department of Defense (DoD) information systems. The requirements are derived from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 800-53 and related documents. Comments or proposed revisions to this document should be sent via email to the following address: [email protected]
Vuln Rule Version CCI Severity Title Description
SV-225259r569185_rule WN12-00-000160 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Server Message Block (SMB) v1 protocol must be disabled on Windows 2012 R2. SMBv1 is a legacy protocol that uses the MD5 algorithm as part of SMB. MD5 is known to be vulnerable to a number of attacks such as collision and preimage attacks as well as not being FIPS compliant. Disabling SMBv1 support may prevent access to file or print sharing resources with systems or devices that only support SMBv1. File shares and print services hosted on Windows Server 2003 are an example, however Windows Server 2003 is no longer a supported operating system. Some older network attached devices may only support SMBv1.
SV-225260r569185_rule WN12-00-000170 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Server Message Block (SMB) v1 protocol must be disabled on the SMB server. SMBv1 is a legacy protocol that uses the MD5 algorithm as part of SMB. MD5 is known to be vulnerable to a number of attacks such as collision and preimage attacks as well as not being FIPS compliant. Disabling SMBv1 support may prevent access to file or print sharing resources with systems or devices that only support SMBv1. File shares and print services hosted on Windows Server 2003 are an example, however Windows Server 2003 is no longer a supported operating system. Some older network attached devices may only support SMBv1.
SV-225261r569185_rule WN12-00-000180 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Server Message Block (SMB) v1 protocol must be disabled on the SMB client. SMBv1 is a legacy protocol that uses the MD5 algorithm as part of SMB. MD5 is known to be vulnerable to a number of attacks such as collision and preimage attacks as well as not being FIPS compliant. Disabling SMBv1 support may prevent access to file or print sharing resources with systems or devices that only support SMBv1. File shares and print services hosted on Windows Server 2003 are an example, however Windows Server 2003 is no longer a supported operating system. Some older network attached devices may only support SMBv1.
SV-225265r569185_rule WN12-00-000220 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Windows PowerShell 2.0 must not be installed on Windows 2012/2012 R2. Windows PowerShell versions 4.0 (with a patch) and 5.x add advanced logging features that can provide additional detail when malware has been run on a system. Ensuring Windows PowerShell 2.0 is not installed as well mitigates against a downgrade attack that evades the advanced logging features of later Windows PowerShell versions.
SV-225266r852182_rule WN12-AC-000001 CCI-002238 MEDIUM Windows 2012 account lockout duration must be configured to 15 minutes or greater. The account lockout feature, when enabled, prevents brute-force password attacks on the system. This parameter specifies the period of time that an account will remain locked after the specified number of failed logon attempts.
SV-225267r569185_rule WN12-AC-000002 CCI-000044 MEDIUM The number of allowed bad logon attempts must meet minimum requirements. The account lockout feature, when enabled, prevents brute-force password attacks on the system. The higher this value is, the less effective the account lockout feature will be in protecting the local system. The number of bad logon attempts must be reasonably small to minimize the possibility of a successful password attack, while allowing for honest errors made during a normal user logon.
SV-225268r852183_rule WN12-AC-000003 CCI-000044 MEDIUM The reset period for the account lockout counter must be configured to 15 minutes or greater on Windows 2012. The account lockout feature, when enabled, prevents brute-force password attacks on the system. This parameter specifies the period of time that must pass after failed logon attempts before the counter is reset to "0". The smaller this value is, the less effective the account lockout feature will be in protecting the local system.
SV-225269r569185_rule WN12-AC-000004 CCI-000200 MEDIUM The password history must be configured to 24 passwords remembered. A system is more vulnerable to unauthorized access when system users recycle the same password several times without being required to change to a unique password on a regularly scheduled basis. This enables users to effectively negate the purpose of mandating periodic password changes. The default value is 24 for Windows domain systems. DoD has decided this is the appropriate value for all Windows systems.
SV-225270r569185_rule WN12-AC-000005 CCI-000199 MEDIUM The maximum password age must meet requirements. The longer a password is in use, the greater the opportunity for someone to gain unauthorized knowledge of the passwords. Scheduled changing of passwords hinders the ability of unauthorized system users to crack passwords and gain access to a system.
SV-225271r569185_rule WN12-AC-000006 CCI-000198 MEDIUM The minimum password age must meet requirements. Permitting passwords to be changed in immediate succession within the same day allows users to cycle passwords through their history database. This enables users to effectively negate the purpose of mandating periodic password changes.
SV-225272r569185_rule WN12-AC-000007 CCI-000205 MEDIUM Passwords must, at a minimum, be 14 characters. Information systems not protected with strong password schemes (including passwords of minimum length) provide the opportunity for anyone to crack the password, thus gaining access to the system and compromising the device, information, or the local network.
SV-225273r569185_rule WN12-AC-000008 CCI-000192 MEDIUM The built-in Windows password complexity policy must be enabled. The use of complex passwords increases their strength against attack. The built-in Windows password complexity policy requires passwords to contain at least 3 of the 4 types of characters (numbers, upper- and lower-case letters, and special characters), as well as preventing the inclusion of user names or parts of.
SV-225274r569185_rule WN12-AC-000009 CCI-000196 HIGH Reversible password encryption must be disabled. Storing passwords using reversible encryption is essentially the same as storing clear-text versions of the passwords. For this reason, this policy must never be enabled.
SV-225275r569185_rule WN12-AU-000001 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Account Logon - Credential Validation successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Credential validation records events related to validation tests on credentials for a user account logon.
SV-225276r569185_rule WN12-AU-000002 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Account Logon - Credential Validation failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Credential validation records events related to validation tests on credentials for a user account logon.
SV-225277r852184_rule WN12-AU-000015 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Account Management - Other Account Management Events successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Other Account Management Events records events such as the access of a password hash or the Password Policy Checking API being called.
SV-225278r852185_rule WN12-AU-000017 CCI-000018 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Account Management - Security Group Management successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Security Group Management records events such as creating, deleting, or changing security groups, including changes in group members.
SV-225279r852186_rule WN12-AU-000019 CCI-000018 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Account Management - User Account Management successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. User Account Management records events such as creating, changing, deleting, renaming, disabling, or enabling user accounts.
SV-225280r852187_rule WN12-AU-000020 CCI-000018 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Account Management - User Account Management failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. User Account Management records events such as creating, changing, deleting, renaming, disabling, or enabling user accounts.
SV-225281r569185_rule WN12-AU-000023 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Detailed Tracking - Process Creation successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Process Creation records events related to the creation of a process and the source.
SV-225282r569185_rule WN12-AU-000030 CCI-000172 MEDIUM Windows Server 2012/2012 R2 must be configured to audit Logon/Logoff - Account Lockout successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Account Lockout events can be used to identify potentially malicious logon attempts.
SV-225283r569185_rule WN12-AU-000031 CCI-000172 MEDIUM Windows Server 2012/2012 R2 must be configured to audit Logon/Logoff - Account Lockout failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Account Lockout events can be used to identify potentially malicious logon attempts.
SV-225284r569185_rule WN12-AU-000045 CCI-000067 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Logon/Logoff - Logoff successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Logoff records user logoffs. If this is an interactive logoff, it is recorded on the local system. If it is to a network share, it is recorded on the system accessed.
SV-225285r569185_rule WN12-AU-000047 CCI-000067 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Logon/Logoff - Logon successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Logon records user logons. If this is an interactive logon, it is recorded on the local system. If it is to a network share, it is recorded on the system accessed.
SV-225286r569185_rule WN12-AU-000048 CCI-000067 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Logon/Logoff - Logon failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Logon records user logons. If this is an interactive logon, it is recorded on the local system. If it is to a network share, it is recorded on the system accessed.
SV-225287r569185_rule WN12-AU-000053 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Logon/Logoff - Special Logon successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Special Logon records special logons which have administrative privileges and can be used to elevate processes.
SV-225292r569185_rule WN12-AU-000085 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Policy Change - Audit Policy Change successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Audit Policy Change records events related to changes in audit policy.
SV-225293r852188_rule WN12-AU-000086 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Policy Change - Audit Policy Change failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Audit Policy Change records events related to changes in audit policy.
SV-225294r852189_rule WN12-AU-000087 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Policy Change - Authentication Policy Change successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Authentication Policy Change records events related to changes in authentication policy, including Kerberos policy and Trust changes.
SV-225295r569185_rule WN12-AU-000089 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Policy Change - Authorization Policy Change successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Authorization Policy Change records events related to changes in user rights, such as Create a token object.
SV-225296r852190_rule WN12-AU-000101 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Privilege Use - Sensitive Privilege Use successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Sensitive Privilege Use records events related to use of sensitive privileges, such as "Act as part of the operating system" or "Debug programs".
SV-225297r852191_rule WN12-AU-000102 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit Privilege Use - Sensitive Privilege Use failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Sensitive Privilege Use records events related to use of sensitive privileges, such as "Act as part of the operating system" or "Debug programs".
SV-225298r569185_rule WN12-AU-000103 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit System - IPsec Driver successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. IPsec Driver records events related to the IPSec Driver such as dropped packets.
SV-225299r569185_rule WN12-AU-000104 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit System - IPsec Driver failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. IPsec Driver records events related to the IPsec Driver such as dropped packets.
SV-225300r852192_rule WN12-AU-000105 CCI-000172 MEDIUM Windows Server 2012/2012 R2 must be configured to audit System - Other System Events successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Audit Other System Events records information related to cryptographic key operations and the Windows Firewall service. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000458-GPOS-00203
SV-225301r852193_rule WN12-AU-000106 CCI-000172 MEDIUM Windows Server 2012/2012 R2 must be configured to audit System - Other System Events failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Audit Other System Events records information related to cryptographic key operations and the Windows Firewall service. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000458-GPOS-00203
SV-225302r852194_rule WN12-AU-000107 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit System - Security State Change successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Security State Change records events related to changes in the security state, such as startup and shutdown of the system.
SV-225303r852195_rule WN12-AU-000109 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit System - Security System Extension successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Security System Extension records events related to extension code being loaded by the security subsystem.
SV-225304r852196_rule WN12-AU-000111 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit System - System Integrity successes. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. System Integrity records events related to violations of integrity to the security subsystem.
SV-225305r852197_rule WN12-AU-000112 CCI-000172 MEDIUM The system must be configured to audit System - System Integrity failures. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. System Integrity records events related to violations of integrity to the security subsystem.
SV-225313r569185_rule WN12-AU-000213 CCI-001494 MEDIUM Event Viewer must be protected from unauthorized modification and deletion. Protecting audit information also includes identifying and protecting the tools used to view and manipulate log data. Therefore, protecting audit tools is necessary to prevent unauthorized operation on audit information. Operating systems providing tools to interface with audit information will leverage user permissions and roles identifying the user accessing the tools and the corresponding rights the user enjoys in order to make access decisions regarding the modification or deletion of audit tools.
SV-225314r569185_rule WN12-CC-000001 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Mapper I/O network protocol (LLTDIO) driver must be disabled. The Mapper I/O network protocol (LLTDIO) driver allows the discovery of the connected network and allows various options to be enabled. Disabling this helps protect the system from potentially discovering and connecting to unauthorized devices.
SV-225315r569185_rule WN12-CC-000002 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Responder network protocol driver must be disabled. The Responder network protocol driver allows a computer to be discovered and located on a network. Disabling this helps protect the system from potentially being discovered and connected to by unauthorized devices.
SV-225316r569185_rule WN12-CC-000003 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Windows Peer-to-Peer networking services must be turned off. Peer-to-Peer applications can allow unauthorized access to a system and exposure of sensitive data. This setting will turn off the Microsoft Peer-to-Peer Networking Service.
SV-225317r569185_rule WN12-CC-000004 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Network Bridges must be prohibited in Windows. A Network Bridge can connect two or more network segments, allowing unauthorized access or exposure of sensitive data. This setting prevents a Network Bridge from being installed and configured.
SV-225318r569185_rule WN12-CC-000005 CCI-001084 LOW Domain users must be required to elevate when setting a networks location. Selecting an incorrect network location may allow greater exposure of a system. Elevation is required by default on nondomain systems to change network location. This setting configures elevation to also be required on domain-joined systems.
SV-225319r569185_rule WN12-CC-000006 CCI-000366 LOW All Direct Access traffic must be routed through the internal network. Routing all Direct Access traffic through the internal network allows monitoring and prevents split tunneling.
SV-225324r569185_rule WN12-CC-000011 CCI-000366 LOW IP stateless autoconfiguration limits state must be enabled. IP stateless autoconfiguration could configure routes that circumvent preferred routes if not limited.
SV-225325r569185_rule WN12-CC-000012 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The configuration of wireless devices using Windows Connect Now must be disabled. Windows Connect Now allows the discovery and configuration of devices over wireless. Wireless devices must be managed. If a rogue device is connected to a system, there is potential for sensitive information to be compromised.
SV-225326r569185_rule WN12-CC-000013 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Windows Connect Now wizards must be disabled. Windows Connect Now provides wizards for tasks such as "Set up a wireless router or access point" and must not be available to users. Functions such as these may allow unauthorized connections to a system and the potential for sensitive information to be compromised.
SV-225327r852200_rule WN12-CC-000016 CCI-001812 LOW Windows Update must be prevented from searching for point and print drivers. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting will prevent Windows from searching Windows Update for point and print drivers. Only the local driver store and server driver cache will be searched.
SV-225328r852201_rule WN12-CC-000018 CCI-001812 LOW Optional component installation and component repair must be prevented from using Windows Update. Uncontrolled system updates can introduce issues to a system. Obtaining update components from an outside source may also potentially provide sensitive information outside of the enterprise. Optional component installation or repair must be obtained from an internal source.
SV-225329r569185_rule WN12-CC-000019 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Remote access to the Plug and Play interface must be disabled for device installation. Remote access to the Plug and Play interface could potentially allow connections by unauthorized devices. This setting configures remote access to the Plug and Play interface and must be disabled.
SV-225330r569185_rule WN12-CC-000020 CCI-000381 LOW An Error Report must not be sent when a generic device driver is installed. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents an error report from being sent when a generic device driver is installed.
SV-225331r569185_rule WN12-CC-000021 CCI-000366 LOW A system restore point must be created when a new device driver is installed. A system restore point allows a rollback if an issue is encountered when a new device driver is installed.
SV-225332r569185_rule WN12-CC-000022 CCI-000381 LOW Device metadata retrieval from the Internet must be prevented. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting will prevent Windows from retrieving device metadata from the Internet.
SV-225333r569185_rule WN12-CC-000023 CCI-000381 LOW Windows must be prevented from sending an error report when a device driver requests additional software during installation. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting will prevent Windows from sending an error report to Microsoft when a device driver requests additional software during installation.
SV-225334r852202_rule WN12-CC-000024 CCI-001812 LOW Device driver searches using Windows Update must be prevented. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting will prevent the system from searching Windows Update for device drivers.
SV-225335r852203_rule WN12-CC-000025 CCI-001812 LOW Device driver updates must only search managed servers, not Windows Update. Uncontrolled system updates can introduce issues to a system. Obtaining update components from an outside source may also potentially provide sensitive information outside of the enterprise. Device driver updates must be obtained from an internal source.
SV-225336r852204_rule WN12-CC-000026 CCI-001812 LOW Users must not be prompted to search Windows Update for device drivers. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents users from being prompted to search Windows Update for device drivers.
SV-225337r569185_rule WN12-CC-000027 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Early Launch Antimalware, Boot-Start Driver Initialization Policy must be enabled and configured to only Good and Unknown. Compromised boot drivers can introduce malware prior to some protection mechanisms that load after initialization. The Early Launch Antimalware driver can limit allowed drivers based on classifications determined by the malware protection application. At a minimum, drivers determined to be bad must not be allowed.
SV-225338r569185_rule WN12-CC-000028 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Group Policy objects must be reprocessed even if they have not changed. Enabling this setting and then selecting the "Process even if the Group Policy objects have not changed" option ensures that the policies will be reprocessed even if none have been changed. This way, any unauthorized changes are forced to match the domain-based group policy settings again.
SV-225339r569185_rule WN12-CC-000029 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Group Policies must be refreshed in the background if the user is logged on. If this setting is enabled, then Group Policy settings are not refreshed while a user is currently logged on. This could lead to instances when a user does not have the latest changes to a policy applied and is therefore operating in an insecure context.
SV-225340r569185_rule WN12-CC-000030 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Access to the Windows Store must be turned off. Uncontrolled installation of applications can introduce various issues, including system instability, and allow access to sensitive information. Installation of applications must be controlled by the enterprise. Turning off access to the Windows Store will limit access to publicly available applications.
SV-225341r569185_rule WN12-CC-000032 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Downloading print driver packages over HTTP must be prevented. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents the computer from downloading print driver packages over HTTP.
SV-225342r569185_rule WN12-CC-000033 CCI-000381 LOW Event Viewer Events.asp links must be turned off. Viewing events is a function of administrators, who must not access the internet with privileged accounts. This setting will disable Events.asp hyperlinks in Event Viewer to prevent links to the internet from within events.
SV-225343r569185_rule WN12-CC-000035 CCI-000381 LOW Errors in handwriting recognition on tablet PCs must not be reported to Microsoft. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents errors in handwriting recognition on tablet PCs from being reported to Microsoft.
SV-225344r569185_rule WN12-CC-000038 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Internet File Association service must be turned off. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents unhandled file associations from using the Microsoft Web service to find an application.
SV-225345r569185_rule WN12-CC-000039 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Printing over HTTP must be prevented. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents the client computer from printing over HTTP, which allows the computer to print to printers on the intranet as well as the Internet.
SV-225346r569185_rule WN12-CC-000045 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Windows Customer Experience Improvement Program must be disabled. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting ensures the Windows Customer Experience Improvement Program is disabled so information is not passed to the vendor.
SV-225347r852205_rule WN12-CC-000047 CCI-001812 MEDIUM Windows must be prevented from using Windows Update to search for drivers. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents Windows from searching Windows Update for device drivers when no local drivers for a device are present.
SV-225348r569185_rule WN12-CC-000048 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Copying of user input methods to the system account for sign-in must be prevented. Allowing different input methods for sign-in could open different avenues of attack. User input methods must be restricted to those enabled for the system account at sign-in.
SV-225349r569185_rule WN12-CC-000051 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Local users on domain-joined computers must not be enumerated. The username is one part of logon credentials that could be used to gain access to a system. Preventing the enumeration of users limits this information to authorized personnel.
SV-225350r569185_rule WN12-CC-000052 CCI-000381 MEDIUM App notifications on the lock screen must be turned off. App notifications that are displayed on the lock screen could display sensitive information to unauthorized personnel. Turning off this feature will limit access to the information to a logged on user.
SV-225351r852206_rule WN12-CC-000054 CCI-002038 MEDIUM Users must be prompted to authenticate on resume from sleep (on battery). Authentication must always be required when accessing a system. This setting ensures the user is prompted for a password on resume from sleep (on battery).
SV-225352r852207_rule WN12-CC-000055 CCI-002038 MEDIUM The user must be prompted to authenticate on resume from sleep (plugged in). Authentication must always be required when accessing a system. This setting ensures the user is prompted for a password on resume from sleep (plugged in).
SV-225353r569185_rule WN12-CC-000058 CCI-001090 MEDIUM The system must be configured to prevent unsolicited remote assistance offers. Remote assistance allows another user to view or take control of the local session of a user. Unsolicited remote assistance is help that is offered by the remote user. This may allow unauthorized parties access to the resources on the computer.
SV-225354r569185_rule WN12-CC-000059 CCI-001090 HIGH Solicited Remote Assistance must not be allowed. Remote assistance allows another user to view or take control of the local session of a user. Solicited assistance is help that is specifically requested by the local user. This may allow unauthorized parties access to the resources on the computer.
SV-225355r569185_rule WN12-CC-000062 CCI-000366 LOW Remote Assistance log files must be generated. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. This setting will turn on session logging for Remote Assistance connections.
SV-225356r852208_rule WN12-CC-000064-MS CCI-001967 MEDIUM Unauthenticated RPC clients must be restricted from connecting to the RPC server. Configuring RPC to restrict unauthenticated RPC clients from connecting to the RPC server will prevent anonymous connections.
SV-225357r569185_rule WN12-CC-000065 CCI-000381 LOW The detection of compatibility issues for applications and drivers must be turned off. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this feature will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system.
SV-225358r569185_rule WN12-CC-000066 CCI-000381 LOW Microsoft Support Diagnostic Tool (MSDT) interactive communication with Microsoft must be prevented. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents the MSDT from communicating with and sending collected data to Microsoft, the default support provider.
SV-225359r569185_rule WN12-CC-000067 CCI-000381 LOW Access to Windows Online Troubleshooting Service (WOTS) must be prevented. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents users from searching troubleshooting content on Microsoft servers. Only local content will be available.
SV-225360r569185_rule WN12-CC-000068 CCI-000381 LOW Responsiveness events must be prevented from being aggregated and sent to Microsoft. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents responsiveness events from being aggregated and sent to Microsoft.
SV-225362r569185_rule WN12-CC-000070 CCI-000366 LOW Trusted app installation must be enabled to allow for signed enterprise line of business apps. Enabling trusted app installation allows for enterprise line of business Windows 8 type apps. A trusted app package is one that is signed with a certificate chain that can be successfully validated in the enterprise. Configuring this ensures enterprise line of business apps are accessible.
SV-225363r569185_rule WN12-CC-000071 CCI-000381 LOW The Application Compatibility Program Inventory must be prevented from collecting data and sending the information to Microsoft. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting will prevent the Program Inventory from collecting data about a system and sending the information to Microsoft.
SV-225364r852210_rule WN12-CC-000072 CCI-001764 HIGH Autoplay must be turned off for non-volume devices. Allowing Autoplay to execute may introduce malicious code to a system. Autoplay begins reading from a drive as soon as media is inserted into the drive. As a result, the setup file of programs or music on audio media may start. This setting will disable Autoplay for non-volume devices (such as Media Transfer Protocol (MTP) devices).
SV-225365r852211_rule WN12-CC-000073 CCI-001764 HIGH The default Autorun behavior must be configured to prevent Autorun commands. Allowing Autorun commands to execute may introduce malicious code to a system. Configuring this setting prevents Autorun commands from executing.
SV-225366r852212_rule WN12-CC-000074 CCI-001764 HIGH Autoplay must be disabled for all drives. Allowing Autoplay to execute may introduce malicious code to a system. Autoplay begins reading from a drive as soon media is inserted into the drive. As a result, the setup file of programs or music on audio media may start. By default, Autoplay is disabled on removable drives, such as the floppy disk drive (but not the CD-ROM drive) and on network drives. Enabling this policy disables Autoplay on all drives.
SV-225367r569185_rule WN12-CC-000075 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The use of biometrics must be disabled. Allowing biometrics may bypass required authentication methods. Biometrics may only be used as an additional authentication factor where an enhanced strength of identity credential is necessary or desirable. Additional factors must be met per DoD policy.
SV-225368r569185_rule WN12-CC-000076 CCI-000206 MEDIUM The password reveal button must not be displayed. Visible passwords may be seen by nearby persons, compromising them. The password reveal button can be used to display an entered password and must not be allowed.
SV-225369r569185_rule WN12-CC-000077 CCI-001084 MEDIUM Administrator accounts must not be enumerated during elevation. Enumeration of administrator accounts when elevating can provide part of the logon information to an unauthorized user. This setting configures the system to always require users to enter in a username and password to elevate a running application.
SV-225370r852213_rule WN12-CC-000084 CCI-001849 MEDIUM The Application event log size must be configured to 32768 KB or greater. Inadequate log size will cause the log to fill up quickly. This may prevent audit events from being recorded properly and require frequent attention by administrative personnel.
SV-225371r852214_rule WN12-CC-000085 CCI-001849 MEDIUM The Security event log size must be configured to 196608 KB or greater. Inadequate log size will cause the log to fill up quickly. This may prevent audit events from being recorded properly and require frequent attention by administrative personnel.
SV-225372r852215_rule WN12-CC-000086 CCI-001849 MEDIUM The Setup event log size must be configured to 32768 KB or greater. Inadequate log size will cause the log to fill up quickly. This may prevent audit events from being recorded properly and require frequent attention by administrative personnel.
SV-225373r852216_rule WN12-CC-000087 CCI-001849 MEDIUM The System event log size must be configured to 32768 KB or greater. Inadequate log size will cause the log to fill up quickly. This may prevent audit events from being recorded properly and require frequent attention by administrative personnel.
SV-225374r569185_rule WN12-CC-000088 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Windows SmartScreen must be enabled on Windows 2012/2012 R2. Windows SmartScreen helps protect systems from programs downloaded from the Internet that may be malicious. Warning a user before running downloaded unknown software, at minimum, will help prevent potentially malicious programs from executing.
SV-225375r852217_rule WN12-CC-000089 CCI-002824 MEDIUM Explorer Data Execution Prevention must be enabled. Data Execution Prevention (DEP) provides additional protection by performing checks on memory to help prevent malicious code from running. This setting will prevent Data Execution Prevention from being turned off for File Explorer.
SV-225376r852218_rule WN12-CC-000090 CCI-002385 LOW Turning off File Explorer heap termination on corruption must be disabled. Legacy plug-in applications may continue to function when a File Explorer session has become corrupt. Disabling this feature will prevent this.
SV-225377r569185_rule WN12-CC-000091 CCI-000366 MEDIUM File Explorer shell protocol must run in protected mode. The shell protocol will limit the set of folders applications can open when run in protected mode. Restricting files an application can open to a limited set of folders increases the security of Windows.
SV-225378r569185_rule WN12-CC-000095 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The location feature must be turned off. The location service on systems may allow sensitive data to be used by applications on the system. This should be turned off unless explicitly allowed for approved systems/applications.
SV-225379r852219_rule WN12-CC-000096 CCI-002038 MEDIUM Passwords must not be saved in the Remote Desktop Client. Saving passwords in the Remote Desktop Client could allow an unauthorized user to establish a remote desktop session to another system. The system must be configured to prevent users from saving passwords in the Remote Desktop Client.
SV-225380r569185_rule WN12-CC-000098 CCI-001090 MEDIUM Local drives must be prevented from sharing with Remote Desktop Session Hosts. (Remote Desktop Services Role). Preventing users from sharing the local drives on their client computers to Remote Session Hosts that they access helps reduce possible exposure of sensitive data.
SV-225381r852220_rule WN12-CC-000099 CCI-002038 MEDIUM Remote Desktop Services must always prompt a client for passwords upon connection. This setting controls the ability of users to supply passwords automatically as part of their remote desktop connection. Disabling this setting would allow anyone to use the stored credentials in a connection item to connect to the terminal server.
SV-225382r852221_rule WN12-CC-000100 CCI-000068 MEDIUM Remote Desktop Services must be configured with the client connection encryption set to the required level. Remote connections must be encrypted to prevent interception of data or sensitive information. Selecting "High Level" will ensure encryption of Remote Desktop Services sessions in both directions.
SV-225383r569185_rule WN12-CC-000103 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Remote Desktop Services must delete temporary folders when a session is terminated. Remote desktop session temporary folders must always be deleted after a session is over to prevent hard disk clutter and potential leakage of information. This setting controls the deletion of the temporary folders when the session is terminated.
SV-225384r569185_rule WN12-CC-000104 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Remote Desktop Services must be configured to use session-specific temporary folders. If a communal temporary folder is used for remote desktop sessions, it might be possible for users to access other users' temporary folders. If this setting is enabled, only one temporary folder is used for all remote desktop sessions. Per session temporary folders must be established.
SV-225385r569185_rule WN12-CC-000105 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Attachments must be prevented from being downloaded from RSS feeds. Attachments from RSS feeds may not be secure. This setting will prevent attachments from being downloaded from RSS feeds.
SV-225386r569185_rule WN12-CC-000106 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Basic authentication for RSS feeds over HTTP must be turned off. Basic authentication uses plain text passwords that could be used to compromise a system.
SV-225389r852222_rule WN12-CC-000115 CCI-001812 MEDIUM Users must be prevented from changing installation options. Installation options for applications are typically controlled by administrators. This setting prevents users from changing installation options that may bypass security features.
SV-225390r852223_rule WN12-CC-000116 CCI-001812 HIGH The Windows Installer Always install with elevated privileges option must be disabled. Standard user accounts must not be granted elevated privileges. Enabling Windows Installer to elevate privileges when installing applications can allow malicious persons and applications to gain full control of a system.
SV-225391r569185_rule WN12-CC-000117 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Users must be notified if a web-based program attempts to install software. Users must be aware of attempted program installations. This setting ensures users are notified if a web-based program attempts to install software.
SV-225392r852224_rule WN12-CC-000118 CCI-001812 LOW Nonadministrators must be prevented from applying vendor-signed updates. Uncontrolled system updates can introduce issues to a system. This setting will prevent users from applying vendor-signed updates (though they may be from a trusted source).
SV-225393r569185_rule WN12-CC-000120 CCI-000381 MEDIUM Windows Media Digital Rights Management (DRM) must be prevented from accessing the Internet. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This check verifies that Windows Media DRM will be prevented from accessing the Internet.
SV-225394r569185_rule WN12-CC-000121 CCI-000366 LOW Users must not be presented with Privacy and Installation options on first use of Windows Media Player. Some features may communicate with the vendor, sending system information or downloading data or components for the feature. Turning off this capability will prevent potentially sensitive information from being sent outside the enterprise and uncontrolled updates to the system. This setting prevents users from being presented with Privacy and Installation options on first use of Windows Media Player, which could enable some communication with the vendor.
SV-225395r852225_rule WN12-CC-000122 CCI-001812 MEDIUM Windows Media Player must be configured to prevent automatic checking for updates. Uncontrolled system updates can introduce issues to a system. The automatic check for updates performed by Windows Media Player must be disabled to ensure a constant platform and to prevent the introduction of unknown\untested software on the system.
SV-225396r569185_rule WN12-CC-000123 CCI-000877 HIGH The Windows Remote Management (WinRM) client must not use Basic authentication. Basic authentication uses plain text passwords that could be used to compromise a system.
SV-225397r852226_rule WN12-CC-000124 CCI-002890 MEDIUM The Windows Remote Management (WinRM) client must not allow unencrypted traffic. Unencrypted remote access to a system can allow sensitive information to be compromised. Windows remote management connections must be encrypted to prevent this.
SV-225398r569185_rule WN12-CC-000125 CCI-000877 MEDIUM The Windows Remote Management (WinRM) client must not use Digest authentication. Digest authentication is not as strong as other options and may be subject to man-in-the-middle attacks.
SV-225399r569185_rule WN12-CC-000126 CCI-000877 HIGH The Windows Remote Management (WinRM) service must not use Basic authentication. Basic authentication uses plain text passwords that could be used to compromise a system.
SV-225400r852227_rule WN12-CC-000127 CCI-002890 MEDIUM The Windows Remote Management (WinRM) service must not allow unencrypted traffic. Unencrypted remote access to a system can allow sensitive information to be compromised. Windows remote management connections must be encrypted to prevent this.
SV-225401r852228_rule WN12-CC-000128 CCI-002038 MEDIUM The Windows Remote Management (WinRM) service must not store RunAs credentials. Storage of administrative credentials could allow unauthorized access. Disallowing the storage of RunAs credentials for Windows Remote Management will prevent them from being used with plug-ins.
SV-225402r569185_rule WN12-CC-000130 CCI-001453 MEDIUM The Remote Desktop Session Host must require secure RPC communications. Allowing unsecure RPC communication exposes the system to man-in-the-middle attacks and data disclosure attacks. A man-in-the-middle attack occurs when an intruder captures packets between a client and server and modifies them before allowing the packets to be exchanged. Usually the attacker will modify the information in the packets in an attempt to cause either the client or server to reveal sensitive information.
SV-225404r852229_rule WN12-CC-000132 CCI-002314 MEDIUM Users must be prevented from mapping local COM ports and redirecting data from the Remote Desktop Session Host to local COM ports. (Remote Desktop Services Role). Preventing the redirection of Remote Desktop session data to a client computer's COM ports helps reduce possible exposure of sensitive data.
SV-225405r852230_rule WN12-CC-000133 CCI-002314 MEDIUM Users must be prevented from mapping local LPT ports and redirecting data from the Remote Desktop Session Host to local LPT ports. (Remote Desktop Services Role). Preventing the redirection of Remote Desktop session data to a client computer's LPT ports helps reduce possible exposure of sensitive data.
SV-225406r852231_rule WN12-CC-000134 CCI-002314 MEDIUM The system must be configured to ensure smart card devices can be redirected to the Remote Desktop session. (Remote Desktop Services Role). Enabling the redirection of smart card devices allows their use within Remote Desktop sessions.
SV-225407r852232_rule WN12-CC-000135 CCI-002314 MEDIUM Users must be prevented from redirecting Plug and Play devices to the Remote Desktop Session Host. (Remote Desktop Services Role). Preventing the redirection of Plug and Play devices in Remote Desktop sessions helps reduce possible exposure of sensitive data.
SV-225410r569185_rule WN12-CC-000139 CCI-000135 MEDIUM Windows 2012 R2 must include command line data in process creation events. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Enabling "Include command line data for process creation events" will record the command line information with the process creation events in the log. This can provide additional detail when malware has run on a system. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000042-GPOS-00021
SV-225417r569185_rule WN12-GE-000001 CCI-000366 HIGH Systems must be maintained at a supported service pack level. Systems at unsupported service packs or releases will not receive security updates for new vulnerabilities, which leave them subject to exploitation. Systems must be maintained at a service pack level supported by the vendor with new security updates.
SV-225441r860007_rule WN12-PK-000001 CCI-000185 MEDIUM The DoD Root CA certificates must be installed in the Trusted Root Store. To ensure secure DoD websites and DoD-signed code are properly validated, the system must trust the DoD Root Certificate Authorities (CAs). The DoD root certificates will ensure that the trust chain is established for server certificates issued from the DoD CAs.
SV-225442r860005_rule WN12-PK-000003 CCI-000185 MEDIUM The DoD Interoperability Root CA cross-certificates must be installed into the Untrusted Certificates Store on unclassified systems. To ensure users do not experience denial of service when performing certificate-based authentication to DoD websites due to the system chaining to a root other than DoD Root CAs, the DoD Interoperability Root CA cross-certificates must be installed in the Untrusted Certificate Store. This requirement only applies to unclassified systems.
SV-225443r852241_rule WN12-PK-000004 CCI-000185 MEDIUM The US DoD CCEB Interoperability Root CA cross-certificates must be installed into the Untrusted Certificates Store on unclassified systems. To ensure users do not experience denial of service when performing certificate-based authentication to DoD websites due to the system chaining to a root other than DoD Root CAs, the US DoD CCEB Interoperability Root CA cross-certificates must be installed in the Untrusted Certificate Store. This requirement only applies to unclassified systems.
SV-225444r852242_rule WN12-RG-000001 CCI-002235 HIGH Standard user accounts must only have Read permissions to the Winlogon registry key. Permissions on the Winlogon registry key must only allow privileged accounts to change registry values. If standard users have these permissions, there is a potential for programs to run with elevated privileges when a privileged user logs on to the system.
SV-225445r852243_rule WN12-RG-000002 CCI-002235 HIGH Standard user accounts must only have Read permissions to the Active Setup\Installed Components registry key. Permissions on the Active Setup\Installed Components registry key must only allow privileged accounts to add or change registry values. If standard user accounts have these permissions, there is a potential for programs to run with elevated privileges when a privileged user logs on to the system.
SV-225446r569185_rule WN12-RG-000003-MS CCI-001084 MEDIUM Local administrator accounts must have their privileged token filtered to prevent elevated privileges from being used over the network on domain systems. A compromised local administrator account can provide means for an attacker to move laterally between domain systems. With User Account Control enabled, filtering the privileged token for local administrator accounts will prevent the elevated privileges of these accounts from being used over the network.
SV-225447r852244_rule WN12-RG-000004 CCI-002235 HIGH Anonymous access to the registry must be restricted. The registry is integral to the function, security, and stability of the Windows system. Some processes may require anonymous access to the registry. This must be limited to properly protect the system.
SV-225448r569185_rule WN12-SO-000003 CCI-000804 MEDIUM The built-in guest account must be disabled. A system faces an increased vulnerability threat if the built-in guest account is not disabled. This account is a known account that exists on all Windows systems and cannot be deleted. This account is initialized during the installation of the operating system with no password assigned.
SV-225449r569185_rule WN12-SO-000004 CCI-000366 HIGH Local accounts with blank passwords must be restricted to prevent access from the network. An account without a password can allow unauthorized access to a system as only the username would be required. Password policies should prevent accounts with blank passwords from existing on a system. However, if a local account with a blank password did exist, enabling this setting will prevent network access, limiting the account to local console logon only.
SV-225450r569185_rule WN12-SO-000005 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The built-in administrator account must be renamed. The built-in administrator account is a well-known account subject to attack. Renaming this account to an unidentified name improves the protection of this account and the system.
SV-225451r569185_rule WN12-SO-000006 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The built-in guest account must be renamed. The built-in guest account is a well-known user account on all Windows systems and, as initially installed, does not require a password. This can allow access to system resources by unauthorized users. Renaming this account to an unidentified name improves the protection of this account and the system.
SV-225452r569185_rule WN12-SO-000007 CCI-001095 MEDIUM Auditing the Access of Global System Objects must be turned off. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. This setting prevents the system from setting up a default system access control list for certain system objects, which could create a very large number of security events, filling the security log in Windows and making it difficult to identify actual issues.
SV-225453r569185_rule WN12-SO-000008 CCI-001095 MEDIUM Auditing of Backup and Restore Privileges must be turned off. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. This setting prevents the system from generating audit events for every file backed up or restored, which could fill the security log in Windows, making it difficult to identify actual issues.
SV-225454r569185_rule WN12-SO-000009 CCI-000169 MEDIUM Audit policy using subcategories must be enabled. Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. This setting allows administrators to enable more precise auditing capabilities.
SV-225455r569185_rule WN12-SO-000011 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Ejection of removable NTFS media must be restricted to Administrators. Removable hard drives, if they are not properly configured, can be formatted and ejected by users who are not members of the Administrators Group. Formatting and ejecting removable NTFS media must only be done by administrators.
SV-225456r852245_rule WN12-SO-000012 CCI-002418 MEDIUM Outgoing secure channel traffic must be encrypted or signed. Requests sent on the secure channel are authenticated, and sensitive information (such as passwords) is encrypted, but not all information is encrypted. If this policy is enabled, outgoing secure channel traffic will be encrypted and signed.
SV-225457r852246_rule WN12-SO-000013 CCI-002418 MEDIUM Outgoing secure channel traffic must be encrypted when possible. Requests sent on the secure channel are authenticated, and sensitive information (such as passwords) is encrypted, but not all information is encrypted. If this policy is enabled, outgoing secure channel traffic will be encrypted.
SV-225458r852247_rule WN12-SO-000014 CCI-002418 MEDIUM Outgoing secure channel traffic must be signed when possible. Requests sent on the secure channel are authenticated, and sensitive information (such as passwords) is encrypted, but the channel is not integrity checked. If this policy is enabled, outgoing secure channel traffic will be signed.
SV-225459r569185_rule WN12-SO-000015 CCI-000366 LOW The computer account password must not be prevented from being reset. Computer account passwords are changed automatically on a regular basis. Disabling automatic password changes can make the system more vulnerable to malicious access. Frequent password changes can be a significant safeguard for your system. A new password for the computer account will be generated every 30 days.
SV-225460r569185_rule WN12-SO-000016 CCI-000366 LOW The maximum age for machine account passwords must be set to requirements. Computer account passwords are changed automatically on a regular basis. This setting controls the maximum password age that a machine account may have. This setting must be set to no more than 30 days, ensuring the machine changes its password monthly.
SV-225461r852248_rule WN12-SO-000017 CCI-002418 MEDIUM The system must be configured to require a strong session key. A computer connecting to a domain controller will establish a secure channel. Requiring strong session keys enforces 128-bit encryption between systems.
SV-225462r569185_rule WN12-SO-000018 CCI-000366 LOW The system must be configured to prevent the display of the last username on the logon screen. Displaying the username of the last logged on user provides half of the userid/password equation that an unauthorized person would need to gain access. The username of the last user to log on to a system must not be displayed.
SV-225463r569185_rule WN12-SO-000019 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The Ctrl+Alt+Del security attention sequence for logons must be enabled. Disabling the Ctrl+Alt+Del security attention sequence can compromise system security. Because only Windows responds to the Ctrl+Alt+Del security sequence, a user can be assured that any passwords entered following that sequence are sent only to Windows. If the sequence requirement is eliminated, malicious programs can request and receive a user's Windows password. Disabling this sequence also suppresses a custom logon banner.
SV-225464r569185_rule WN12-SO-000021 CCI-000057 MEDIUM The machine inactivity limit must be set to 15 minutes, locking the system with the screensaver. Unattended systems are susceptible to unauthorized use and should be locked when unattended. The screen saver should be set at a maximum of 15 minutes and be password protected. This protects critical and sensitive data from exposure to unauthorized personnel with physical access to the computer.
SV-225467r569185_rule WN12-SO-000024 CCI-000366 LOW Caching of logon credentials must be limited. The default Windows configuration caches the last logon credentials for users who log on interactively to a system. This feature is provided for system availability reasons, such as the user's machine being disconnected from the network or domain controllers being unavailable. Even though the credential cache is well-protected, if a system is attacked, an unauthorized individual may isolate the password to a domain user account using a password-cracking program and gain access to the domain.
SV-225468r569185_rule WN12-SO-000025 CCI-000366 LOW Users must be warned in advance of their passwords expiring. Creating strong passwords that can be remembered by users requires some thought. By giving the user advance warning, the user has time to construct a sufficiently strong password. This setting configures the system to display a warning to users telling them how many days are left before their password expires.
SV-225469r569185_rule WN12-SO-000027 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The Smart Card removal option must be configured to Force Logoff or Lock Workstation. Unattended systems are susceptible to unauthorized use and must be locked. Configuring a system to lock when a smart card is removed will ensure the system is inaccessible when unattended.
SV-225470r852249_rule WN12-SO-000028 CCI-002418 MEDIUM The Windows SMB client must be configured to always perform SMB packet signing. The server message block (SMB) protocol provides the basis for many network operations. Digitally signed SMB packets aid in preventing man-in-the-middle attacks. If this policy is enabled, the SMB client will only communicate with an SMB server that performs SMB packet signing.
SV-225471r852250_rule WN12-SO-000029 CCI-002418 MEDIUM The Windows SMB client must be enabled to perform SMB packet signing when possible. The server message block (SMB) protocol provides the basis for many network operations. If this policy is enabled, the SMB client will request packet signing when communicating with an SMB server that is enabled or required to perform SMB packet signing.
SV-225472r569185_rule WN12-SO-000030 CCI-000197 MEDIUM Unencrypted passwords must not be sent to third-party SMB Servers. Some non-Microsoft SMB servers only support unencrypted (plain text) password authentication. Sending plain text passwords across the network, when authenticating to an SMB server, reduces the overall security of the environment. Check with the vendor of the SMB server to see if there is a way to support encrypted password authentication.
SV-225473r852251_rule WN12-SO-000031 CCI-001133 LOW The amount of idle time required before suspending a session must be properly set. Open sessions can increase the avenues of attack on a system. This setting is used to control when a computer disconnects an inactive SMB session. If client activity resumes, the session is automatically reestablished. This protects critical and sensitive network data from exposure to unauthorized personnel with physical access to the computer.
SV-225474r852252_rule WN12-SO-000032 CCI-002418 MEDIUM The Windows SMB server must be configured to always perform SMB packet signing. The server message block (SMB) protocol provides the basis for many network operations. Digitally signed SMB packets aid in preventing man-in-the-middle attacks. If this policy is enabled, the SMB server will only communicate with an SMB client that performs SMB packet signing.
SV-225475r852253_rule WN12-SO-000033 CCI-002418 MEDIUM The Windows SMB server must perform SMB packet signing when possible. The server message block (SMB) protocol provides the basis for many network operations. Digitally signed SMB packets aid in preventing man-in-the-middle attacks. If this policy is enabled, the SMB server will negotiate SMB packet signing as requested by the client.
SV-225476r569185_rule WN12-SO-000034 CCI-001133 LOW Users must be forcibly disconnected when their logon hours expire. Users must not be permitted to remain logged on to the network after they have exceeded their permitted logon hours. In many cases, this indicates that a user forgot to log off before leaving for the day. However, it may also indicate that a user is attempting unauthorized access at a time when the system may be less closely monitored. Forcibly disconnecting users when logon hours expire protects critical and sensitive network data from exposure to unauthorized personnel with physical access to the computer.
SV-225477r569185_rule WN12-SO-000035 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The service principal name (SPN) target name validation level must be turned off. If a service principle name (SPN) is provided by the client, it is validated against the server's list of SPNs. Implementation may disrupt file and print sharing capabilities.
SV-225478r569185_rule WN12-SO-000036 CCI-000366 MEDIUM Automatic logons must be disabled. Allowing a system to automatically log on when the machine is booted could give access to any unauthorized individual who restarts the computer. Automatic logon with administrator privileges would give full access to an unauthorized individual.
SV-225479r569185_rule WN12-SO-000037 CCI-000366 LOW IPv6 source routing must be configured to the highest protection level. Configuring the system to disable IPv6 source routing protects against spoofing.
SV-225480r569185_rule WN12-SO-000038 CCI-000366 LOW The system must be configured to prevent IP source routing. Configuring the system to disable IP source routing protects against spoofing.
SV-225481r569185_rule WN12-SO-000039 CCI-000366 LOW The system must be configured to prevent Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) redirects from overriding Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) generated routes. Allowing ICMP redirect of routes can lead to traffic not being routed properly. When disabled, this forces ICMP to be routed via shortest path first.
SV-225482r852254_rule WN12-SO-000041 CCI-002385 LOW The system must be configured to limit how often keep-alive packets are sent. This setting controls how often TCP sends a keep-alive packet in attempting to verify that an idle connection is still intact. A higher value could allow an attacker to cause a denial of service with numerous connections.
SV-225483r569185_rule WN12-SO-000042 CCI-000366 LOW IPSec Exemptions must be limited. IPSec exemption filters allow specific traffic that may be needed by the system for such things as Kerberos authentication. This setting configures Windows for specific IPSec exemptions.
SV-225484r852255_rule WN12-SO-000043 CCI-002385 LOW The system must be configured to ignore NetBIOS name release requests except from WINS servers. Configuring the system to ignore name release requests, except from WINS servers, prevents a denial of service (DoS) attack. The DoS consists of sending a NetBIOS name release request to the server for each entry in the server's cache, causing a response delay in the normal operation of the servers WINS resolution capability.
SV-225485r852256_rule WN12-SO-000044 CCI-002385 LOW The system must be configured to disable the Internet Router Discovery Protocol (IRDP). The Internet Router Discovery Protocol (IRDP) is used to detect and configure default gateway addresses on the computer. If a router is impersonated on a network, traffic could be routed through the compromised system.
SV-225486r569185_rule WN12-SO-000045 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The system must be configured to use Safe DLL Search Mode. The default search behavior, when an application calls a function in a Dynamic Link Library (DLL), is to search the current directory, followed by the directories contained in the system's path environment variable. An unauthorized DLL, inserted into an application's working directory, could allow malicious code to be run on the system. Setting this policy value forces the system to search the %Systemroot% for the DLL before searching the current directory or the rest of the path.
SV-225487r569185_rule WN12-SO-000046 CCI-000366 LOW The system must be configured to have password protection take effect within a limited time frame when the screen saver becomes active. Allowing more than several seconds makes the computer vulnerable to a potential attack from someone walking up to the console to attempt to log on to the system before the lock takes effect.
SV-225488r852257_rule WN12-SO-000047 CCI-002385 LOW IPv6 TCP data retransmissions must be configured to prevent resources from becoming exhausted. Configuring Windows to limit the number of times that IPv6 TCP retransmits unacknowledged data segments before aborting the attempt helps prevent resources from becoming exhausted.
SV-225489r852258_rule WN12-SO-000048 CCI-002385 LOW The system must limit how many times unacknowledged TCP data is retransmitted. In a SYN flood attack, the attacker sends a continuous stream of SYN packets to a server, and the server leaves the half-open connections open until it is overwhelmed and is no longer able to respond to legitimate requests.
SV-225490r852259_rule WN12-SO-000049 CCI-000139 LOW The system must generate an audit event when the audit log reaches a percentage of full threshold. When the audit log reaches a given percent full, an audit event is written to the security log. It is recorded as a successful audit event under the category of System. This option may be especially useful if the audit logs are set to be cleared manually.
SV-225492r569185_rule WN12-SO-000051 CCI-000366 HIGH Anonymous enumeration of SAM accounts must not be allowed. Anonymous enumeration of SAM accounts allows anonymous log on users (null session connections) to list all accounts names, thus providing a list of potential points to attack the system.
SV-225493r569185_rule WN12-SO-000052 CCI-001090 HIGH Anonymous enumeration of shares must be restricted. Allowing anonymous logon users (null session connections) to list all account names and enumerate all shared resources can provide a map of potential points to attack the system.
SV-225494r569185_rule WN12-SO-000054 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The system must be configured to prevent anonymous users from having the same rights as the Everyone group. Access by anonymous users must be restricted. If this setting is enabled, then anonymous users have the same rights and permissions as the built-in Everyone group. Anonymous users must not have these permissions or rights.
SV-225495r569185_rule WN12-SO-000055-MS CCI-001090 HIGH Named pipes that can be accessed anonymously must be configured to contain no values on member servers. Named pipes that can be accessed anonymously provide the potential for gaining unauthorized system access. Pipes are internal system communications processes. They are identified internally by ID numbers that vary between systems. To make access to these processes easier, these pipes are given names that do not vary between systems. This setting controls which of these pipes anonymous users may access.
SV-225496r569185_rule WN12-SO-000056 CCI-001090 HIGH Unauthorized remotely accessible registry paths must not be configured. The registry is integral to the function, security, and stability of the Windows system. Some processes may require remote access to the registry. This setting controls which registry paths are accessible from a remote computer. These registry paths must be limited, as they could give unauthorized individuals access to the registry.
SV-225497r569185_rule WN12-SO-000057 CCI-001090 HIGH Unauthorized remotely accessible registry paths and sub-paths must not be configured. The registry is integral to the function, security, and stability of the Windows system. Some processes may require remote access to the registry. This setting controls which registry paths and sub-paths are accessible from a remote computer. These registry paths must be limited, as they could give unauthorized individuals access to the registry.
SV-225498r569185_rule WN12-SO-000058 CCI-001090 HIGH Anonymous access to Named Pipes and Shares must be restricted. Allowing anonymous access to named pipes or shares provides the potential for unauthorized system access. This setting restricts access to those defined in "Network access: Named Pipes that can be accessed anonymously" and "Network access: Shares that can be accessed anonymously", both of which must be blank under other requirements.
SV-225499r569185_rule WN12-SO-000059 CCI-001090 HIGH Network shares that can be accessed anonymously must not be allowed. Anonymous access to network shares provides the potential for gaining unauthorized system access by network users. This could lead to the exposure or corruption of sensitive data.
SV-225500r569185_rule WN12-SO-000060 CCI-001090 MEDIUM The system must be configured to use the Classic security model. Windows includes two network-sharing security models - Classic and Guest only. With the Classic model, local accounts must be password protected; otherwise, anyone can use guest user accounts to access shared system resources.
SV-225501r569185_rule WN12-SO-000061 CCI-000778 MEDIUM Services using Local System that use Negotiate when reverting to NTLM authentication must use the computer identity vs. authenticating anonymously. Services using Local System that use Negotiate when reverting to NTLM authentication may gain unauthorized access if allowed to authenticate anonymously vs. using the computer identity.
SV-225502r569185_rule WN12-SO-000062 CCI-000366 MEDIUM NTLM must be prevented from falling back to a Null session. NTLM sessions that are allowed to fall back to Null (unauthenticated) sessions may gain unauthorized access.
SV-225503r569185_rule WN12-SO-000063 CCI-000366 MEDIUM PKU2U authentication using online identities must be prevented. PKU2U is a peer-to-peer authentication protocol. This setting prevents online identities from authenticating to domain-joined systems. Authentication will be centrally managed with Windows user accounts.
SV-225504r569185_rule WN12-SO-000064 CCI-000803 MEDIUM Kerberos encryption types must be configured to prevent the use of DES and RC4 encryption suites. Certain encryption types are no longer considered secure. The DES and RC4 encryption suites must not be used for Kerberos encryption. Note: Removing the previously allowed RC4_HMAC_MD5 encryption suite may have operational impacts and must be thoroughly tested for the environment before changing. This includes but is not limited to parent\child trusts where RC4 is still enabled; selecting "The other domain supports Kerberos AES Encryption" may be required on the domain trusts to allow client communication across the trust relationship.
SV-225505r569185_rule WN12-SO-000065 CCI-000196 HIGH The system must be configured to prevent the storage of the LAN Manager hash of passwords. The LAN Manager hash uses a weak encryption algorithm and there are several tools available that use this hash to retrieve account passwords. This setting controls whether or not a LAN Manager hash of the password is stored in the SAM the next time the password is changed.
SV-225506r569185_rule WN12-SO-000066 CCI-001133 MEDIUM The system must be configured to force users to log off when their allowed logon hours expire. Limiting logon hours can help protect data by only allowing access during specified times. This setting controls whether or not users are forced to log off when their allowed logon hours expire. If logon hours are set for users, this must be enforced.
SV-225507r569185_rule WN12-SO-000067 CCI-000366 HIGH The LanMan authentication level must be set to send NTLMv2 response only, and to refuse LM and NTLM. The Kerberos v5 authentication protocol is the default for authentication of users who are logging on to domain accounts. NTLM, which is less secure, is retained in later Windows versions for compatibility with clients and servers that are running earlier versions of Windows or applications that still use it. It is also used to authenticate logons to stand-alone computers that are running later versions.
SV-225508r569185_rule WN12-SO-000068 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The system must be configured to the required LDAP client signing level. This setting controls the signing requirements for LDAP clients. This setting must be set to Negotiate signing or Require signing, depending on the environment and type of LDAP server in use.
SV-225509r569185_rule WN12-SO-000069 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The system must be configured to meet the minimum session security requirement for NTLM SSP-based clients. Microsoft has implemented a variety of security support providers for use with RPC sessions. All of the options must be enabled to ensure the maximum security level.
SV-225510r569185_rule WN12-SO-000070 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The system must be configured to meet the minimum session security requirement for NTLM SSP-based servers. Microsoft has implemented a variety of security support providers for use with RPC sessions. All of the options must be enabled to ensure the maximum security level.
SV-225511r569185_rule WN12-SO-000073 CCI-000366 LOW The shutdown option must not be available from the logon dialog box. Displaying the shutdown button may allow individuals to shut down a system anonymously. Only authenticated users should be allowed to shut down the system. Preventing display of this button in the logon dialog box ensures that individuals who shut down the system are authorized and tracked in the system's Security event log.
SV-225512r852260_rule WN12-SO-000074 CCI-002450 MEDIUM The system must be configured to use FIPS-compliant algorithms for encryption, hashing, and signing. This setting ensures that the system uses algorithms that are FIPS-compliant for encryption, hashing, and signing. FIPS-compliant algorithms meet specific standards established by the U.S. Government and must be the algorithms used for all OS encryption functions.
SV-225513r569185_rule WN12-SO-000075 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The system must be configured to require case insensitivity for non-Windows subsystems. This setting controls the behavior of non-Windows subsystems when dealing with the case of arguments or commands. Case sensitivity could lead to the access of files or commands that must be restricted. To prevent this from happening, case insensitivity restrictions must be required.
SV-225514r569185_rule WN12-SO-000076 CCI-000366 LOW The default permissions of global system objects must be increased. Windows systems maintain a global list of shared system resources such as DOS device names, mutexes, and semaphores. Each type of object is created with a default DACL that specifies who can access the objects with what permissions. If this policy is enabled, the default DACL is stronger, allowing nonadministrative users to read shared objects, but not modify shared objects that they did not create.
SV-225515r852261_rule WN12-SO-000077 CCI-002038 MEDIUM User Account Control approval mode for the built-in Administrator must be enabled. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting configures the built-in Administrator account so that it runs in Admin Approval Mode. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000373-GPOS-00158
SV-225516r569185_rule WN12-SO-000078 CCI-001084 MEDIUM User Account Control must, at minimum, prompt administrators for consent. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting configures the elevation requirements for logged on administrators to complete a task that requires raised privileges.
SV-225517r852262_rule WN12-SO-000079 CCI-002038 MEDIUM User Account Control must automatically deny standard user requests for elevation. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting controls the behavior of elevation when requested by a standard user account. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000373-GPOS-00158
SV-225518r569185_rule WN12-SO-000080 CCI-001084 MEDIUM User Account Control must be configured to detect application installations and prompt for elevation. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting requires Windows to respond to application installation requests by prompting for credentials.
SV-225519r569185_rule WN12-SO-000081 CCI-001084 MEDIUM Windows must elevate all applications in User Account Control, not just signed ones. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting configures whether Windows elevates all applications, or only signed ones.
SV-225520r569185_rule WN12-SO-000082 CCI-001084 MEDIUM User Account Control must only elevate UIAccess applications that are installed in secure locations. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting configures Windows to only allow applications installed in a secure location on the file system, such as the Program Files or the Windows\System32 folders, to run with elevated privileges.
SV-225521r852263_rule WN12-SO-000083 CCI-002038 MEDIUM User Account Control must run all administrators in Admin Approval Mode, enabling UAC. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting enables UAC. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000373-GPOS-00158
SV-225522r569185_rule WN12-SO-000084 CCI-001084 MEDIUM User Account Control must switch to the secure desktop when prompting for elevation. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting ensures that the elevation prompt is only used in secure desktop mode.
SV-225523r569185_rule WN12-SO-000085 CCI-001084 MEDIUM User Account Control must virtualize file and registry write failures to per-user locations. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting configures non-UAC-compliant applications to run in virtualized file and registry entries in per-user locations, allowing them to run.
SV-225524r569185_rule WN12-SO-000086 CCI-001084 MEDIUM UIAccess applications must not be allowed to prompt for elevation without using the secure desktop. User Account Control (UAC) is a security mechanism for limiting the elevation of privileges, including administrative accounts, unless authorized. This setting prevents User Interface Accessibility programs from disabling the secure desktop for elevation prompts.
SV-225525r569185_rule WN12-SO-000088 CCI-000381 LOW Optional Subsystems must not be permitted to operate on the system. The POSIX subsystem is an Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) standard that defines a set of operating system services. The POSIX Subsystem is required if the server supports applications that use that subsystem. The subsystem introduces a security risk relating to processes that can potentially persist across logins. That is, if a user starts a process and then logs out, there is a potential that the next user who logs in to the system could access the previous users process. This is dangerous because the process started by the first user may retain that users system privileges, and anything the second user does with that process will be performed with the privileges of the first user.
SV-225526r852264_rule WN12-SO-000089 CCI-001812 LOW The print driver installation privilege must be restricted to administrators. Allowing users to install drivers can introduce malware or cause the instability of a system. Print driver installation should be restricted to administrators.
SV-225527r569185_rule WN12-SO-000092 CCI-000186 MEDIUM Users must be required to enter a password to access private keys stored on the computer. If the private key is discovered, an attacker can use the key to authenticate as an authorized user and gain access to the network infrastructure. The cornerstone of the PKI is the private key used to encrypt or digitally sign information. If the private key is stolen, this will lead to the compromise of the authentication and non-repudiation gained through PKI because the attacker can use the private key to digitally sign documents and pretend to be the authorized user. Both the holders of a digital certificate and the issuing authority must protect the computers, storage devices, or whatever they use to keep the private keys.
SV-225528r569185_rule WN12-SV-000100 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Fax service must be disabled if installed. Unnecessary services increase the attack surface of a system. Some of these services may not support required levels of authentication or encryption.
SV-225529r569185_rule WN12-SV-000101 CCI-000382 MEDIUM The Microsoft FTP service must not be installed unless required. Unnecessary services increase the attack surface of a system. Some of these services may not support required levels of authentication or encryption.
SV-225530r569185_rule WN12-SV-000103 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Peer Networking Identity Manager service must be disabled if installed. Unnecessary services increase the attack surface of a system. Some of these services may not support required levels of authentication or encryption.
SV-225531r569185_rule WN12-SV-000104 CCI-000381 MEDIUM The Simple TCP/IP Services service must be disabled if installed. Unnecessary services increase the attack surface of a system. Some of these services may not support required levels of authentication or encryption.
SV-225532r569185_rule WN12-SV-000105 CCI-000382 MEDIUM The Telnet service must be disabled if installed. Unnecessary services increase the attack surface of a system. Some of these services may not support required levels of authentication or encryption.
SV-225533r569185_rule WN12-SV-000106 CCI-000366 MEDIUM The Smart Card Removal Policy service must be configured to automatic. The automatic start of the Smart Card Removal Policy service is required to support the smart card removal behavior requirement.
SV-225545r852266_rule WN12-UR-000001 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Access Credential Manager as a trusted caller user right must not be assigned to any groups or accounts. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Access Credential Manager as a trusted caller" user right may be able to retrieve the credentials of other accounts from Credential Manager.
SV-225546r569185_rule WN12-UR-000002-MS CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Access this computer from the network user right must only be assigned to the Administrators and Authenticated Users groups on member servers. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Access this computer from the network" user right may access resources on the system, and must be limited to those that require it.
SV-225547r852267_rule WN12-UR-000003 CCI-002235 HIGH The Act as part of the operating system user right must not be assigned to any groups or accounts. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Act as part of the operating system" user right can assume the identity of any user and gain access to resources that user is authorized to access. Any accounts with this right can take complete control of a system.
SV-225548r569185_rule WN12-UR-000005 CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Allow log on locally user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Allow log on locally" user right can log on interactively to a system.
SV-225549r569185_rule WN12-UR-000006-MS CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Allow log on through Remote Desktop Services user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group and other approved groups. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Allow log on through Remote Desktop Services" user right can access a system through Remote Desktop.
SV-225550r852268_rule WN12-UR-000007 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Back up files and directories user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Back up files and directories" user right can circumvent file and directory permissions and could allow access to sensitive data.
SV-225551r852269_rule WN12-UR-000011 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Create a pagefile user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Create a pagefile" user right can change the size of a pagefile, which could affect system performance.
SV-225552r852270_rule WN12-UR-000012 CCI-002235 HIGH The Create a token object user right must not be assigned to any groups or accounts. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Create a token object" user right allows a process to create an access token. This could be used to provide elevated rights and compromise a system.
SV-225553r852271_rule WN12-UR-000013 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Create global objects user right must only be assigned to Administrators, Service, Local Service, and Network Service. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Create global objects" user right can create objects that are available to all sessions, which could affect processes in other users' sessions.
SV-225554r852272_rule WN12-UR-000014 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Create permanent shared objects user right must not be assigned to any groups or accounts. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Create permanent shared objects" user right could expose sensitive data by creating shared objects.
SV-225555r852273_rule WN12-UR-000015 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Create symbolic links user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Create symbolic links" user right can create pointers to other objects, which could potentially expose the system to attack.
SV-225556r852274_rule WN12-UR-000016 CCI-002235 HIGH The Debug programs user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Debug programs" user right can attach a debugger to any process or to the kernel, providing complete access to sensitive and critical operating system components. This right is given to Administrators in the default configuration.
SV-225557r569185_rule WN12-UR-000017-MS CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Deny access to this computer from the network user right on member servers must be configured to prevent access from highly privileged domain accounts and local accounts on domain systems, and from unauthenticated access on all systems. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Deny access to this computer from the network" user right defines the accounts that are prevented from logging on from the network. In an Active Directory Domain, denying logons to the Enterprise Admins and Domain Admins groups on lower-trust systems helps mitigate the risk of privilege escalation from credential theft attacks which could lead to the compromise of an entire domain. Local accounts on domain-joined systems must also be assigned this right to decrease the risk of lateral movement resulting from credential theft attacks. The Guests group must be assigned this right to prevent unauthenticated access.
SV-225558r569185_rule WN12-UR-000018-MS CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Deny log on as a batch job user right on member servers must be configured to prevent access from highly privileged domain accounts on domain systems, and from unauthenticated access on all systems. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Deny log on as a batch job" user right defines accounts that are prevented from logging on to the system as a batch job such, as Task Scheduler. In an Active Directory Domain, denying logons to the Enterprise Admins and Domain Admins groups on lower-trust systems helps mitigate the risk of privilege escalation from credential theft attacks which could lead to the compromise of an entire domain. The Guests group must be assigned to prevent unauthenticated access.
SV-225559r569185_rule WN12-UR-000019-MS CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Deny log on as a service user right on member servers must be configured to prevent access from highly privileged domain accounts on domain systems. No other groups or accounts must be assigned this right. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Deny log on as a service" user right defines accounts that are denied log on as a service. In an Active Directory Domain, denying logons to the Enterprise Admins and Domain Admins groups on lower-trust systems helps mitigate the risk of privilege escalation from credential theft attacks which could lead to the compromise of an entire domain. Incorrect configurations could prevent services from starting and result in a DoS.
SV-225560r569185_rule WN12-UR-000020-MS CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Deny log on locally user right on member servers must be configured to prevent access from highly privileged domain accounts on domain systems, and from unauthenticated access on all systems. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Deny log on locally" user right defines accounts that are prevented from logging on interactively. In an Active Directory Domain, denying logons to the Enterprise Admins and Domain Admins groups on lower-trust systems helps mitigate the risk of privilege escalation from credential theft attacks which could lead to the compromise of an entire domain. The Guests group must be assigned this right to prevent unauthenticated access.
SV-225561r569185_rule WN12-UR-000021-MS CCI-000213 MEDIUM The Deny log on through Remote Desktop Services user right on member servers must be configured to prevent access from highly privileged domain accounts and all local accounts on domain systems, and from unauthenticated access on all systems. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Deny log on through Remote Desktop Services" user right defines the accounts that are prevented from logging on using Remote Desktop Services. In an Active Directory Domain, denying logons to the Enterprise Admins and Domain Admins groups on lower-trust systems helps mitigate the risk of privilege escalation from credential theft attacks which could lead to the compromise of an entire domain. Local accounts on domain-joined systems must also be assigned this right to decrease the risk of lateral movement resulting from credential theft attacks. The Guests group must be assigned this right to prevent unauthenticated access.
SV-225562r852275_rule WN12-UR-000022-MS CCI-002235 MEDIUM Unauthorized accounts must not have the Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation user right on member servers. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Enable computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation" user right allows the "Trusted for Delegation" setting to be changed. This could potentially allow unauthorized users to impersonate other users.
SV-225563r852276_rule WN12-UR-000023 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Force shutdown from a remote system user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Force shutdown from a remote system" user right can remotely shut down a system, which could result in a DoS.
SV-225564r852277_rule WN12-UR-000024 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Generate security audits user right must only be assigned to Local Service and Network Service. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Generate security audits" user right specifies users and processes that can generate Security Log audit records, which must only be the system service accounts defined.
SV-225565r852278_rule WN12-UR-000025 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Impersonate a client after authentication user right must only be assigned to Administrators, Service, Local Service, and Network Service. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Impersonate a client after authentication" user right allows a program to impersonate another user or account to run on their behalf. An attacker could potentially use this to elevate privileges.
SV-225566r852279_rule WN12-UR-000027 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Increase scheduling priority user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Increase scheduling priority" user right can change a scheduling priority causing performance issues or a DoS.
SV-225567r852280_rule WN12-UR-000028 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Load and unload device drivers user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Load and unload device drivers" user right allows device drivers to dynamically be loaded on a system by a user. This could potentially be used to install malicious code by an attacker.
SV-225568r852281_rule WN12-UR-000029 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Lock pages in memory user right must not be assigned to any groups or accounts. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. The "Lock pages in memory" user right allows physical memory to be assigned to processes, which could cause performance issues or a DoS.
SV-225569r852282_rule WN12-UR-000032 CCI-000162 MEDIUM The Manage auditing and security log user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Manage auditing and security log" user right can manage the security log and change auditing configurations. This could be used to clear evidence of tampering.
SV-225570r852283_rule WN12-UR-000034 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Modify firmware environment values user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Modify firmware environment values" user right can change hardware configuration environment variables. This could result in hardware failures or a DoS.
SV-225571r852284_rule WN12-UR-000035 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Perform volume maintenance tasks user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Perform volume maintenance tasks" user right can manage volume and disk configurations. They could potentially delete volumes, resulting in data loss or a DoS.
SV-225572r852285_rule WN12-UR-000036 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Profile single process user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Profile single process" user right can monitor nonsystem processes performance. An attacker could potentially use this to identify processes to attack.
SV-225573r852286_rule WN12-UR-000040 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Restore files and directories user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Restore files and directories" user right can circumvent file and directory permissions and could allow access to sensitive data. It could also be used to overwrite more current data.
SV-225574r852287_rule WN12-UR-000042 CCI-002235 MEDIUM The Take ownership of files or other objects user right must only be assigned to the Administrators group. Inappropriate granting of user rights can provide system, administrative, and other high-level capabilities. Accounts with the "Take ownership of files or other objects" user right can take ownership of objects and make changes.