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Disable alerter unless alerter use is absolutely necessary.


CONTROL ID
01810
CONTROL TYPE
Configuration
CLASSIFICATION
Preventive

SUPPORTING AND SUPPORTED CONTROLS




This Control directly supports the implied Control(s):
  • Disable all unnecessary services unless otherwise noted in a policy exception., CC ID: 00880

There are no implementation support Controls.


SELECTED AUTHORITY DOCUMENTS COMPLIED WITH




  • This service allows Windows 2000 computers to alert each other if a problem occurs. The alerter service goes unused in most circumstances. This service should be Disabled. (Pg 23, The Center for Internet Security Windows 2000 Benchmark, 2.2.1)
  • The Alerter service sends messages between processes and the users console to alert them to the status. This service should be Disabled. The permissions on this service should also be Administrator: Full Control; System: Read, Start, Stop, and Pause. (§ 4.1.1, The Center for Internet Security Windows 2000 Professional Benchmark, 2.2.1)
  • This service allows Windows 2000 computers to alert each other if a problem occurs. The alerter service goes unused in most circumstances. This service should be Disabled. (§ 23, The Center for Internet Security Windows 2000 Professional Operating System Level 2 Benchmark, 2.2.1)
  • The alerter service sends messages between processes on two computers telling the status of the process. This setting should be Disabled. (§ 4.1.1, The Center for Internet Security Windows 2000 Server Benchmark, 2.2.1)
  • This mostly unused service alerts other Windows computers if there is a problem. This service should be Disabled. The permissions for this service should be Administrators: Full Control; System: Read, Start, Stop, and Pause. (Pg 23, The Center for Internet Security Windows NT Benchmark, 1.0.5)
  • The organization must only enable Alerter if absolutely necessary. The Alerter service is disabled by default with Windows XP Service Pack 2. (§ 4.1.1, The Center for Internet Security Windows XP Professional SP1/SP2 Benchmark, 2.01)
  • Table F-1: For Windows 2000 Server, the organization must configure the permissions for Alerter to Administrators: Full Control; System: Read; and System: Start, Stop, and Pause. Table F-2: For Windows 2003 Server, the organization must configure the permissions for Alerter (Alerter) to Administrato… (Table F-1, Table F-2, Table F-3, Table F-4, CMS Business Partners Systems Security Manual, Rev. 10)
  • The Alerter service should be disabled. The service should be documented if enabling it is required. (§ 5.2.2.1, DISA Windows Server 2003 Security Checklist, Version 6 Release 1.11)
  • The Alerter service should be Disabled, unless absolutely necessary. If it is Enabled, there should be a documented and justified reason. (§ 5.2.2.1, DISA Windows XP Security Checklist, Version 6 Release 1.11)
  • For all Windows XP environments, this service should be Disabled. (§ 6.5, Guidance for Securing Microsoft Windows XP Systems for IT Professionals, NIST SP 800-68, Revision 1)
  • This service notifies users and computers of alerts. This service also can be used to send messages to specific users connected to the network. The Alerter service should be Disabled. (Pg 67, NSA Guide to Security Microsoft Windows XP)