STIGUI
V-258230CAT I — High severitySV-258230r1268222_rule

RHEL 9 must enable FIPS mode.

Rule version RHEL-09-671010 · STIG v2 · 2026-09-17

Discussion

Use of weak or untested encryption algorithms undermines the purposes of using encryption to protect data. The operating system must implement cryptographic modules adhering to the higher standards approved by the federal government because this provides assurance they have been tested and validated.

Satisfies: SRG-OS-000033-GPOS-00014, SRG-OS-000125-GPOS-00065, SRG-OS-000250-GPOS-00093, SRG-OS-000393-GPOS-00173, SRG-OS-000394-GPOS-00174, SRG-OS-000396-GPOS-00176, SRG-OS-000423-GPOS-00187, SRG-OS-000478-GPOS-00223

Check

Verify RHEL 9 is in FIPS mode with the following command:

$ cat /proc/sys/crypto/fips_enabled 1

If the command does not return "1", this is a finding.

Fix

Configure RHEL 9 to implement FIPS mode.

If this check fails on an installed system, it is a permanent finding until the system is reinstalled with "fips=1" during installation.

Identifiers

Group ID
V-258230
Group title
SRG-OS-000033-GPOS-00014
Rule ID
SV-258230r1268222_rule
Check ID
C-61971r1184332_chk
Fix ID
F-61895r1184333_fix