V-2258

Discussion

Excessive permissions for the anonymous web user account are one of the most common faults contributing to the compromise of a web server. If this user is able to upload and execute files on the web server, the organization or owner of the server will no longer have control of the asset.

Check Content

To view the value of Alias enter the following command: 

grep "Alias" /usr/local/apache2/conf/httpd.conf 

Alias
ScriptAlias
ScriptAliasMatch

Review the results to determine the location of the files listed above. 

Enter the following command to determine the permissions of the above file: 

ls -Ll /file-path

The only accounts listed should be the web administrator, developers, and the account assigned to run the apache server service. 

If accounts that don’t need access to these directories are listed, this is a finding. 

If the permissions assigned to the account for the Apache web server service, or any group to which the Apache web server service belongs, is greater than Read & Execute (R_E), this is a finding.