diff --git a/common.rc b/common.rc
index f952d118..5e3f0b5e 100644
--- a/common.rc
+++ b/common.rc
@@ -39,6 +39,9 @@ then
     exit 1
 fi
 
+# make sure we have a standard umask
+umask 022
+
 # awk
 AWK_PROG=awk