# Ensure talk client is not installed

The 'talk' protocol is an outdated and unencrypted communication tool. Its presence on a system introduces an unnecessary security risk by expanding the attack surface with a service that lacks modern security features like encryption. Disabling it aligns with the principle of least functionality, which dictates that systems should only provide the services essential for their role. The audit script verifies the installation status of the 'talk' package via the system's package manager. The remediation script uses the package manager to purge the 'talk' package, ensuring it and its configuration files are completely removed. The recommended state for all security levels (Basic, Moderate, and Strict) is 'Not Installed' because there is no secure operational case for this legacy service in a modern IT environment. Any installation of this package presents an equivalent and unnecessary risk, regardless of the overall system hardening level.

## Recommended State Configuration

| Security Level | Value |
|----------------|-------|
| **Basic** | `['Not Installed']` |
| **Moderate** | `['Not Installed']` |
| **Strict** | `['Not Installed']` |
| **Type** | `ENUM` |

## Audit Script Working

Bash script that checks if the 'talk' package is installed using 'dpkg-query'. The script must output only the string 'Installed' or 'Not Installed' based on the package's status.

## Remediation Script Working

Bash script that accepts a single positional argument, which will be the desired state ('Not Installed'). If the argument is 'Not Installed', the script must use 'apt-get purge -y talk' to remove the package. The script must output 'true' on successful removal or if the package is already absent, and 'false' on failure.

