Rule version ANIX-00-000740 · STIG v1 · 2025-08-19
Use of a complex password helps to increase the time and resources required to compromise the password. Password complexity, or strength, is a measure of the effectiveness of a password in resisting attempts at guessing and brute-force attacks.
Verify NixOS enforces password complexity by requiring at least one lowercase character with the following command:
$ grep lcredit /etc/security/pwquality.conf
lcredit=-1
If the value of "lcredit" is a positive number or is commented out, this is a finding.
Configure NixOS to enforce password complexity.
Add the following Nix code to the NixOS Configuration, usually located in /etc/nixos/configuration.nix or /etc/nixos/flake.nix:
environment.etc."/security/pwquality.conf".text = '' lcredit=-1 '';
Rebuild and switch to the new NixOS configuration: $ sudo nixos-rebuild switch