SV-224888r958732: Windows Server 2016 must be configured to audit Detailed Tracking - Process Creation successes. | Microsoft Windows Server 2016 STIG SCAP Benchmark

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Assessment Title

Rule Text

Windows Server 2016 must be configured to audit Detailed Tracking - Process Creation successes.

Description

Discussion Text

Maintaining an audit trail of system activity logs can help identify configuration errors, troubleshoot service disruptions, and analyze compromises that have occurred, as well as detect attacks. Audit logs are necessary to provide a trail of evidence in case the system or network is compromised. Collecting this data is essential for analyzing the security of information assets and detecting signs of suspicious and unexpected behavior. Process Creation records events related to the creation of a process and the source. Satisfies: SRG-OS-000327-GPOS-00127, SRG-OS-000471-GPOS-00215

How this relates to the STIG checklist: STIG vs SCAP benchmark.

IA Controls

NIST SP 800-53

Not mappedCCI-000172Not mappedCCI-002234SV-88085V-73433

References

DPMS Target Microsoft Windows Server 2016 DISA DPMS Target Microsoft Windows Server 2016 4205

Checks

DISA STIG (Manual Reference)

Security Option "Audit: Force audit policy subcategory settings (Windows Vista or later) to override audit policy category settings" must be set to "Enabled" (WN16-SO-000050) for the detailed auditing subcategories to be effective. 

Use the AuditPol tool to review the current Audit Policy configuration:

Open an elevated "Command Prompt" (run as administrator).

Enter "AuditPol /get /category:*".

Compare the AuditPol settings with the following.

If the system does not audit the following, this is a finding.

Detailed Tracking >> Process Creation - Success

SCC Automation Reference

The reconstructed evaluation script behind this rule's OVAL check(s) — every module a compound check combines, with this rule's own concrete values and DISA's SCC tool's real per-module mechanism curated from static teardown of SCC releases.

# Windows PowerShell
# Reconstructed from oval:mil.disa.stig.windows:def:1063
# Windows Server 2016 must be configured to audit Detailed Tracking - Process Creation successes.
# Per-module read mechanism curated from static teardown of DISA's SCC tool
# (SCAP Compliance Checker) -- see the SCC Automation Reference above.

# Audit - Process Creation - Success only
# auditeventpolicysubcategories_object (auditeventpolicysubcategories_test)
function test_1 {
  return ((@{'No Auditing'='AUDIT_NONE';'Success'='AUDIT_SUCCESS';'Failure'='AUDIT_FAILURE';'Success and Failure'='AUDIT_SUCCESS_FAILURE'}[(auditpol /get /subcategory:'Process Creation' /r | ConvertFrom-Csv).'Inclusion Setting']) -eq 'AUDIT_SUCCESS')
}
# Audit - Process Creation - Success and Failure
# auditeventpolicysubcategories_object (auditeventpolicysubcategories_test)
function test_2 {
  return ((@{'No Auditing'='AUDIT_NONE';'Success'='AUDIT_SUCCESS';'Failure'='AUDIT_FAILURE';'Success and Failure'='AUDIT_SUCCESS_FAILURE'}[(auditpol /get /subcategory:'Process Creation' /r | ConvertFrom-Csv).'Inclusion Setting']) -eq 'AUDIT_SUCCESS_FAILURE')
}

if ((test_1 -or test_2)) {
  Write-Output "PASS"
} else {
  Write-Output "FAIL"
}

Assessment Script Powered by AISyntax-verified

A standalone PowerShell script to assess this control automatically. Review before running it in your environment.

Syntax-checked as valid PowerShell. Not executed here — running it for real needs the actual ms_windows_server_2016 target this check assesses.

# OVAL Definition: oval:mil.disa.stig.windows:def:1063
$auditPolicy = Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_LocalGroupPolicyObject -Property AuditProcessCreation
if ($auditPolicy.AuditProcessCreation -eq "AUDIT_SUCCESS") { Write-Output "PASS"; exit 0 } else { Write-Output "FAIL"; exit 1 }

Remediation

Configure the policy value for Computer Configuration >> Windows Settings >> Security Settings >> Advanced Audit Policy Configuration >> System Audit Policies >> Detailed Tracking >> "Audit Process Creation" with "Success" selected.