SSL validation disabled within Ansible DNF module misconfiguration detected in code

Rule Details

Cortex AppSec Rule ID	APPSEC2_ANSIBLE_5
Category - Subcategory	Public Exposure - Encryption And Protocols
Provider	OTHER
Severity	MEDIUM
Framework	Ansible

Impact

This rule detects whether SSL certificate validation is enforced when using the DNF module in Ansible. SSL verifies the authenticity of the server's SSL certificate, ensuring that HTTPS connections are secure and the server's identity is validated. This is critical for preventing Man-in-the-Middle attacks.

How to Fix

Module: dnf

• Attribute: sslverify

To mitigate this risk, ensure that the sslverify attribute is not set to 'false' in your DNF tasks. If not explicitly set, the default behavior is to perform SSL validation. It is recommended to explicitly set sslverify to 'true' to enforce clarity and intent in the code.

Secure Code Example:

In this example, setting sslverify to 'true' ensures the integrity and authenticity of your SSL connections enhancing the security of your package management operations. [source,go]

• name: Example ansible.builtin.dnf: name: nginx state: latest sslverify: true

---