I was recently setting up a headless server for my home network and wanted to disable the MOTD when ssh-ing in. In doing so, I discovered an alternative to editing the /etc/motd file.
Per man login, the login service will suppress the MOTD if a $HOME/.hushlogin file exists for the user. Alternatively, you can also set the file that this will check by configuring the HUSHLOGIN_FILE in etc/login.defs.
The more you know…