Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 • Release: 7 Benchmark Date: 05 Jan 2026
CAT II V-258086 RHEL-09-432025
RHEL 9 must require users to reauthenticate for privilege escalation.
Discussion
Without reauthentication, users may access resources or perform tasks for which they do not have authorization. When operating systems provide the capability to escalate a functional capability, it is critical that the user reauthenticate. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000373-GPOS-00156, SRG-OS-000373-GPOS-00157, SRG-OS-000373-GPOS-00158
Check Procedure
Verify that "/etc/sudoers" has no occurrences of "!authenticate" with the following command: $ sudo egrep -iR '!authenticate' /etc/sudoers /etc/sudoers.d/ If any occurrences of "!authenticate" are returned, this is a finding.
Fix Action
Configure RHEL 9 to not allow users to execute privileged actions without authenticating. Remove any occurrence of "!authenticate" found in "/etc/sudoers" file or files in the "/etc/sudoers.d" directory. $ sudo sed -i '/\!authenticate/ s/^/# /g' /etc/sudoers /etc/sudoers.d/*