Microsoft Exchange Server
TMA-EXCHANGE-2.2.9
Ensure 'External send connector authentication: IgnoreStartTLS' is set to 'False'
Description
This policy setting specifies whether to ignore the StartTLS option offered by a remote sending server. StartTLS is a protocol command used to inform the email server that the email client wants to upgrade from an insecure connection to a secure one using TLS or SSL. Prints the number of Send connectors where IgnoreSTARTTLS is True (expected 0). Run on a Mailbox server (organization-wide objects are read from AD). Run from an Exchange Management Shell or after `Add-PSSnapin Microsoft.Exchange.Management.PowerShell.SnapIn`; the audit loads the snap-in itself when Get-ExchangeServer is missing and fails if it cannot.
How it is checked
Audit method: Shell command
$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'; if (-not (Get-Command Get-ExchangeServer -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue)) { Add-PSSnapin Microsoft.Exchange.Management.PowerShell.SnapIn -ErrorAction Stop }; if (-not (Get-Command Get-ExchangeServer -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue)) { throw 'Exchange Management Shell cmdlets are not available' }; $bad = @(Get-SendConnector -ErrorAction Stop | Where-Object { $_.IgnoreSTARTTLS -eq $true }); $bad.Count- Expected output
0
How it is fixed
Fix method: Guidance or infrastructure patch
Set-SendConnector '<connector>' -IgnoreSTARTTLS $false
Properties
- Operating systems
- Any
- Tags
- exchangetransporttls
- Reference
- CIS Microsoft Exchange Server 2019 Benchmark v1.0.1 - 2.2.9 Ensure 'External send connector authentication: IgnoreStartTLS' is set to 'False'
Check this host
Run this on a machine you are allowed to audit. The scan is read-only.
tmaegis scan --target exchange