NacTrack
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Security

How to check whether a device still allows Telnet

Telnet carries passwords in clear text. Most networks turned it off years ago, which is exactly why the ones still answering on port 23 are easy to miss: they are usually not the devices anyone is worried about. NacTrack evaluates the collected configuration against a hardening benchmark for the platform, so the answer comes from what the device is actually running rather than from what the standard build was supposed to contain.

All the questions
The same procedure as a recording, subtitled in English and French.
Before you start

What you need

  • Module required: compliance.
  • Permission required: view_audit.
  • All benchmarked platforms; every shipped ruleset carries a Telnet check

1. Read the fleet scores

app.nactrack.com/compliance/report
Read the fleet scores
A high score is not a clean bill of health. It is a weighted average, so a device can sit in the nineties while still failing one high-severity check. That is the case worth hunting for, because nobody looks twice at a device scoring ninety-five per cent.

2. Open one device

app.nactrack.com/compliance/device/12138
Open one device
Opening a device lists every check that was run against it. This aggregation switch scores almost ninety-five per cent, and one line is marked FAIL: the Telnet server is still enabled.

3. Read the finding

app.nactrack.com/compliance/report
Read the finding
The row carries more than a verdict. Evidence says what was found in the configuration, Recommendation says why it matters, and Fix gives the commands that would clear it. You can take that straight to a change request without opening the device.
The limits

What this view does not tell you

  • This reads configuration, not reachability. A device whose Telnet server is enabled may still be unreachable on port 23 because a firewall or a management ACL blocks it. The finding says the door is unlocked, not that anyone can walk to it.
  • The verdict is only as fresh as the last configuration collection. A device hardened this morning still reads as failing until it is collected and evaluated again.

Try the same thing on your own estate

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