cis-ubuntu1604-v200-1-5-3

name	cis-ubuntu1604-v200-1-5-3
description	Ensure prelink is disabled
category	cis-storage
version	2.0.0
author	cyberstrike-official
tags	["cis","ubuntu","linux","ubuntu-16.04","prelink","file-integrity","hardening"]
cis_id	1.5.3
cis_benchmark	CIS Ubuntu Linux 16.04 LTS Benchmark v2.0.0
tech_stack	["ubuntu","linux"]
cwe_ids	[]
chains_with	[]
prerequisites	[]
severity_boost	{}

CIS Ubuntu Linux 16.04 LTS Benchmark v2.0.0 - 1.5.3

Profile Applicability

• 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 -s prelink | grep -E '(Status:|not installed)'

Expected output: dpkg-query: package 'prelink' is not installed and no information is available

Expected Result

The prelink package should not be 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

Default Value

prelink is not installed by default.

References

None.

CIS Controls

Controls Version	Control
v7	14.9 Enforce Detail Logging for Access or Changes to Sensitive Data

Assessment Status

Automated