# Cis Oke V180 3.1.3

> Ensure that the kubelet configuration file has permissions set to 644 or more restrictive (Automated)

- Skill: `cyberstrikeus/cis-oke-v180-3-1-3` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add cyberstrikeus/cis-oke-v180-3-1-3`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/cyberstrikeus/cis-oke-v180-3-1-3/raw
- Safety review: PASS (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector WARNING)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: DevOps & Infra
- Author: cyberstrikeus (https://skillmd.com/u/cyberstrikeus)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/cyberstrikeus/cis-oke-v180-3-1-3

---


# CIS OKE Benchmark v1.8.0 - Control 3.1.3

## Profile Applicability

- **Level:** 1

## Description

Ensure that if the kubelet refers to a configuration file with the `--config` argument, that file has permissions of 644 or more restrictive.

## Rationale

The kubelet reads various parameters, including security settings, from a config file specified by the `--config` argument. If this file is specified you should restrict its file permissions to maintain the integrity of the file. The file should be writable by only the administrators on the system.

## Impact

None.

## Audit Procedure

### Method 1

First, SSH to the relevant worker node.

To check to see if the Kubelet Service is running:

```bash
sudo systemctl status kubelet
```

The output should return `Active: active (running) since..`

Run the following command on each node to find the appropriate Kubelet config file:

```bash
ps -ef | grep kubelet
```

The output of the above command should return something similar to `--config /etc/kubernetes/kubelet.conf` which is the location of the Kubelet config file.

Run the following command:

```bash
stat -c %a /etc/kubernetes/kubelet.conf
```

The output of the above command is the Kubelet config file's permissions. Verify that the permissions are `644` or more restrictive.

### Method 2

Create and Run a Privileged Pod.

You will need to run a pod that is privileged enough to access the host's file system. This can be achieved by deploying a pod that uses the hostPath volume to mount the node's file system into the pod.

Here's an example of a simple pod definition that mounts the root of the host to /host within the pod:

```yaml
apiVersion: v1
kind: Pod
metadata:
  name: file-check
spec:
  volumes:
    - name: host-root
      hostPath:
        path: /
        type: Directory
  containers:
    - name: nsenter
      image: busybox
      command: ["sleep", "3600"]
      volumeMounts:
        - name: host-root
          mountPath: /host
      securityContext:
        privileged: true
```

Save this to a file (e.g., file-check-pod.yaml) and create the pod:

```bash
kubectl apply -f file-check-pod.yaml
```

Once the pod is running, you can exec into it to check file permissions on the node:

```bash
kubectl exec -it file-check -- sh
```

Now you are in a shell inside the pod, but you can access the node's file system through the /host directory and check the permission level of the file:

```bash
ls -l /host/etc/kubernetes/kubelet.conf
```

Verify that if a file is specified and it exists, the permissions are `644` or more restrictive.

## Remediation

Run the following command (using the config file location identified in the Audit step):

```bash
chmod 644 etc/kubernetes/kubelet.conf
```

## Default Value

See the OKE documentation for the default value.

## References

1. https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/administer-cluster/kubelet-config-file/
2. https://docs.cloud.oracle.com/en-us/iaas/Content/ContEng/Concepts/contengoverview.htm

## CIS Controls

| Controls Version | Control                                               | IG 1 | IG 2 | IG 3 |
| ---------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
| v8               | 3.3 Configure Data Access Control Lists               | \*   | \*   | \*   |
| v7               | 14.6 Protect Information through Access Control Lists | \*   | \*   | \*   |

## MITRE ATT&CK Mappings

| Techniques / Sub-techniques | Tactics        | Mitigations |
| --------------------------- | -------------- | ----------- |
| T1083, T1222                | TA0005, TA0007 | M1022       |

## Profile

**Level 1** (Automated)