OL 9 SSH daemon must perform strict mode checking of home directory configuration files.

Severity
Group ID
Group Title
Version
Rule ID
Date
STIG Version
mediumV-271714SRG-OS-000480-GPOS-00227OL09-00-002351SV-271714r1091854_rule2025-05-081
Description
If other users have access to modify user-specific SSH configuration files, they may be able to log into the system as another user.
ℹ️ Check
Verify that OL 9 SSH daemon performs strict mode checking of home directory configuration files with the following command: $ sudo /usr/sbin/sshd -dd 2>&1 | awk '/filename/ {print $4}' | tr -d '\r' | tr '\n' ' ' | xargs sudo grep -iH '^\s*strictmodes' StrictModes yes If the "StrictModes" keyword is set to "no", the returned line is commented out, or no output is returned, this is a finding.
✔️ Fix
Configure the SSH daemon to perform strict mode checking of home directory configuration files. Add the following line to "/etc/ssh/sshd_config" or to a file in "/etc/ssh/sshd_config.d" or uncomment the line and set the value to "yes": StrictModes yes The SSH service must be restarted for changes to take effect: $ sudo systemctl restart sshd.service