RHEL 9 must disable the kernel.core_pattern.
Severity | Group ID | Group Title | Version | Rule ID | Date | STIG Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| medium | V-257803 | SRG-OS-000480-GPOS-00227 | RHEL-09-213040 | SV-257803r991589_rule | 2025-02-27 | 2 |
| Description |
|---|
| A core dump includes a memory image taken at the time the operating system terminates an application. The memory image could contain sensitive data and is generally useful only for developers trying to debug problems. |
| ℹ️ Check |
|---|
| Verify RHEL 9 disables storing core dumps with the following commands: $ sudo sysctl kernel.core_pattern kernel.core_pattern = |/bin/false If the returned line does not have a value of "|/bin/false", or a line is not returned and the need for core dumps is not documented with the information system security officer (ISSO) as an operational requirement, this is a finding. Check that the configuration files are present to disable core dump storage. $ sudo /usr/lib/systemd/systemd-sysctl --cat-config | egrep -v '^(#|;)' | grep -F kernel.core_pattern | tail -1 kernel.core_pattern = |/bin/false If "kernel.core_pattern" is not set to "|/bin/false" and is not documented with the ISSO as an operational requirement, or is missing, this is a finding. |
| ✔️ Fix |
|---|
| Configure RHEL 9 to disable storing core dumps. Add or edit the following line in a system configuration file, in the "/etc/sysctl.d/" directory: kernel.core_pattern = |/bin/false The system configuration files need to be reloaded for the changes to take effect. To reload the contents of the files, run the following command: $ sudo sysctl --system |