STIGQter: STIG Summary: VMware vSphere 8.0 vCenter Appliance Photon OS 4.0 Security Technical Implementation Guide Version: 2 Release: 2 Benchmark Date: 01 Jul 2026:

The operating system must store only encrypted representations of passwords.

DISA Rule

SV-258818r1015943_rule

Vulnerability Number

V-258818

Group Title

SRG-OS-000073-GPOS-00041

Rule Version

PHTN-40-000039

Severity

CAT I

CCI(s)

• CCI-004062 - For password-based authentication, store passwords using an approved salted key derivation function, preferably using a keyed hash.

Weight

10

Fix Recommendation

Navigate to and open:

/etc/login.defs

Add or update the following line:

ENCRYPT_METHOD SHA512

Check Contents

At the command line, run the following command to verify passwords are stored with only encrypted representations:

# grep ^ENCRYPT_METHOD /etc/login.defs

Example result:

ENCRYPT_METHOD SHA512

If the "ENCRYPT_METHOD" option is not set to "SHA512", is missing or commented out, this is a finding.

Vulnerability Number

V-258818

Documentable

False

Rule Version

PHTN-40-000039

Severity Override Guidance

At the command line, run the following command to verify passwords are stored with only encrypted representations:

# grep ^ENCRYPT_METHOD /etc/login.defs

Example result:

ENCRYPT_METHOD SHA512

If the "ENCRYPT_METHOD" option is not set to "SHA512", is missing or commented out, this is a finding.

Check Content Reference

M

Target Key

5569