1.1.10 Disable USB Storage

Information

USB storage provides a means to transfer and store files insuring persistence and availability of the files independent of network connection status. Its popularity and utility has led to USB-based malware being a simple and common means for network infiltration and a first step to establishing a persistent threat within a networked environment.

Restricting USB access on the system will decrease the physical attack surface for a device and diminish the possible vectors to introduce malware.

Solution

Edit or create a file in the /etc/modprobe.d/ directory ending inconf

Example: vim /etc/modprobe.d/usb_storage.conf and add the following line:

install usb-storage /bin/true

Run the following command to unload the usb-storage module:

rmmod usb-storage

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/files/3742

Item Details

Category: MEDIA PROTECTION

References: 800-53|MP-7, CSCv7|13.7

Plugin: Unix

Control ID: 3f9ff4b2d64d0fdbadc12e55752391c58a3d99f581a8b03433c1314ccd0ea5ca