18.9.25.2 (L1) Ensure 'Do not allow password expiration time longer than required by policy' is set to 'Enabled'

Information

This policy setting configures whether the password age dictated by the Windows LAPS 'Password Settings' policy is enforced and cannot be extended manually (only shortened) by an authorized technician.

If an expiration is detected, the password is changed immediately, and password expiration is set according to policy.

The recommended state for this setting is: Enabled

Note: Organizations that utilize third-party commercial software to manage unique & complex local Administrator passwords on domain members may opt to disregard these LAPS recommendations.

Note #2: Windows LAPS does not support standalone computers - they must be joined to an Active Directory domain or Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory).

Due to the difficulty in managing local Administrator passwords, many organizations choose to use the same password on all workstations and/or Member Servers when deploying them. This creates a serious attack surface security risk because if an attacker manages to compromise one system and learn the password to its local Administrator account, then they can leverage that account to instantly gain access to all other computers that also use that password for their local Administrator account.

Solution

To establish the recommended configuration via GP, set the following UI path to Enabled :

Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\System\LAPS\Do not allow password expiration time longer than required by policy

Note: This Group Policy path may not exist by default. It is provided by the Group Policy template LAPS.admx/adml that is included with the Microsoft Windows 11 Release 22H2 Administrative Templates v3.0 (or newer).

Impact:

None - this is the default behavior.

Planned password expiration longer than password age dictated by 'Password Settings' policy is NOT allowed.

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/benchmarks/16515

Item Details

Category: IDENTIFICATION AND AUTHENTICATION

References: 800-53|IA-5(1)(d)

Plugin: Windows

Control ID: 97e96b5c7d16013072aa5086790d1b479a6d55a916c0a1dc9603baf1df4cd65b