1.1.23 Disable USB Storage - modprobe

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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.
Rationale:
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 in .conf 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
Notes:
An alternative solution to disabling the usb-storage module may be found in USBGuard. Red Hat documents the use of the USBGuard framework for fine-grained, policy-driven control of USB devices on Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems at https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/security_guide/sec-using-usbguard.
Use of USBGuard and construction of USB device policies should be done in alignment with site policy.

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/files/2485

Item Details

Category: CONFIGURATION MANAGEMENT

References: 800-53|CM-7, CSCv7|8.4, CSCv7|8.5

Plugin: Unix

Control ID: 5442a17aa01252b3e720cad33019fee1c7359f402cf38b264fe33d0a8be39a69