V-217410

Discussion

Once an attacker establishes initial access to a system, the attacker often attempts to create a persistent method of reestablishing access. One way to accomplish this is for the attacker to simply enable a new or disabled account. Notification of account enabling is one method for mitigating this risk. A comprehensive account management process will ensure an audit trail that documents the creation of application user accounts and notifies administrators and Information System Security Officers (ISSO). Such a process greatly reduces the risk that accounts will be surreptitiously created and provides logging that can be used for forensic purposes.

Check Content

Verify the BIG-IP appliance is configured to use a properly configured remote authentication server that automatically audits account-enabling actions.

Navigate to the BIG-IP System manager >> System >> Users >> Authentication.

Verify that "User Directory" is set to an approved authentication server type that automatically audits account-enabling actions.

If the BIG-IP appliance is not configured to use a properly configured remote authentication server to automatically audit account-enabling actions, this is a finding.