NixOS must require the change of at least 50 percent of the total number of characters when passwords are changed.
Severity | Group ID | Group Title | Version | Rule ID | Date | STIG Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| medium | V-268129 | SRG-OS-000072-GPOS-00040 | ANIX-00-000760 | SV-268129r1131063_rule | 2025-08-19 | 1 |
Description
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.
ℹ️ Check
Verify NixOS enforces password complexity by requiring that at least 50 percent of the characters are changed with the following command:
$ grep difok /etc/security/pwquality.conf
difok=8
If the value of "difok" is set to less than "8", or is commented out, this is a finding.
✔️ Fix
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 = ''
difok=8
'';
Rebuild and switch to the new NixOS configuration:
$ sudo nixos-rebuild switch