cis-ubuntu2004-v300-1-5-4

name	cis-ubuntu2004-v300-1-5-4
description	Ensure prelink is not installed
category	cis-storage
version	3.0.0
author	cyberstrike-official
tags	["cis","ubuntu","linux","ubuntu-20.04","prelink","hardening","integrity"]
cis_id	1.5.4
cis_benchmark	CIS Ubuntu Linux 20.04 LTS Benchmark v3.0.0
tech_stack	["ubuntu","linux"]
cwe_ids	[]
chains_with	[]
prerequisites	[]
severity_boost	{}

1.5.4 Ensure prelink is not installed (Automated)

Profile

• Level 1 - Server
• Level 1 - Workstation

Description

prelink is a program that modifies ELF shared libraries and ELF dynamically linked binaries in such a way that the time needed for the dynamic linker to perform relocations at startup significantly decreases.

Rationale

The prelinking feature can interfere with the operation of AIDE, because it changes binaries. Prelinking can also increase the vulnerability of the system if a malicious user is able to compromise a common library such as libc.

Audit Procedure

Command Line

Verify prelink is not installed:

# dpkg-query -s prelink &>/dev/null && echo "prelink is installed"

Nothing should be returned.

Expected Result

No output should be returned, confirming prelink is not installed.

Remediation

Command Line

Run the following command to restore binaries to normal:

# prelink -ua

Uninstall prelink using the appropriate package manager or manual installation:

# apt purge prelink

References

1. NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5: CM-6, CM-1, CM-3

CIS Controls

Controls Version	Control	IG 1	IG 2	IG 3
v8	3.14 Log Sensitive Data Access			*
v7	14.9 Enforce Detail Logging for Access or Changes to Sensitive Data			*

MITRE ATT&CK Mappings: T1055, T1055.009, T1065, T1065.001 | TA0002 | M1050