2.10.2 Ensure Require Password After Screen Saver Begins or Display Is Turned Off Is Enabled for 5 Seconds or Immediately

Information

Sleep and screen saver modes are low power modes that reduce electrical consumption while the system is not in use.

Prompting for a password when waking from sleep or screen saver mode mitigates the threat of an unauthorized person gaining access to a system in the user's absence.

Solution

Graphical Method:

Perform the following steps to enable a password for unlock after a screen saver begins or after sleep:

- Open System Settings
- Select Lock Screen
- Set Require password after screensaver begins or display is turned off to either After 0 seconds or After 5 seconds

Terminal Method:

Run the following command to require a password to unlock the computer after the screen saver engages or the computer sleeps:

$ /usr/bin/sudo /usr/sbin/sysadminctl -screenLock immediate -password <administrator password>

or

$ /usr/bin/sudo /usr/sbin/sysadminctl -screenLock 5 seconds -password <administrator password>

Profile Method:

Create or edit a configuration profile with the following information:

- The PayloadType string is com.apple.screensaver
- The key to include is askForPassword
- The key must be set to <true/>
- The key to also include is askForPasswordDelay
- The key must be set to <integer><0,5></integer>

Impact:

Without a screenlock in place, anyone with physical access to the computer would be logged in and able to use the active user's session.

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/benchmarks/15551

Item Details

Category: IDENTIFICATION AND AUTHENTICATION

References: 800-53|IA-5, CSCv7|4.2

Plugin: Unix

Control ID: a210f13c63bb8b48b2925a5d40344ecfaf38c50790188c4728fdcc5cafe1b0a9