NIST SP 800-53 Compliance Software

National Institute of Standards & Technology Special Publication 800-53

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NIST SP 800-53 is a critical component of FISMA compliance. Highly recommended security controls for Federal Information Systems and Organisations.

What is NIST SP 800-53?

NIST Special Publication 800-53, known as the National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800-53, sets out standards and guidelines for how US government agencies should architect, implement, manage their information security systems and the data stored on their systems.

The Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) requires NIST SP 800-53 to set standards and guidelines for federal agencies and contractors.

NIST SP 800-53 also has a role in developing Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) alongside FISMA.

As we continue to see a growing dependency on the internet and a greater dependence on information systems for business and personal communication, the need for information privacy and security is only increasing.

ISMS.online can help your organisation comply and achieve NIST SP 800-53.

What Is the Purpose of NIST SP 800-53?

The guidelines apply to all elements of an information system that stores, processes, or transmits federal information.

The guidelines cover areas like mobile and cloud computing, insider threats, application security, supply chain security and have been crafted under the evolving nature of information security.

NIST SP 800-533 covers the steps in the risk management framework that address security control selection for federal information systems according to the security requirements in FIPS.

The security rules cover areas such as access control, incident response, business continuity, and disaster recovery. A vital part of federal information systems’ assessment and authorisation process is selecting and implementing a subset of the controls from the security control catalogue, NIST 800-53, Appendix F.

The management, operational, and technical safeguards are prescribed for an information system to protect the confidentiality, integrity, availability of the system and its information.

The controls can be adjusted and tailored to fit more closely with the goals and environments of the organisation.

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What Are the Benefits of NIST SP 800-53?

The standard provides more secure information systems via control families. Private organisations comply with NIST SP 800-53 because its 18 control families assist them in meeting the challenge of selecting appropriate basic security controls, policies & procedures.

Ensuring security and compliance is only one of the benefits of the customisation process. Consistency and cost-effective application of controls across your information technology infrastructure are promoted by it. To ensure its relevance to your infrastructure and environment, it encourages you to analyse each security and privacy control that you select.

NIST 800-53 Security Controls

The impact of incidents on various data and information systems requires a careful risk assessment. NIST 800-53 has a catalogue of security, privacy controls, and guidance controls. Controls should be chosen based on the protection requirements of the content.

Security and Control Families

As previously mentioned, Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) can you help choose the controls your organisation needs against the three impact levels found in FIPS.

These impact levels are:

  • Low – meaning data loss would have a limited detrimental impact.
  • Moderate – meaning data loss would have a seriously detrimental effect.
  • High – meaning data loss would have a devastating effect.

NIST SP 800-53 controls are allocated into the following:

Family NameID Example of Controls
Access ControlACAccount management & monitoring
Awareness and TrainingATUser awareness and training on security threats
Audit and AccountabilityAUContent of audit records – Analysis & reporting – Record retention
Assessment, Authorization, and MonitoringCAConnections to public networks & external systems – Penetration testing
Configuration ManagementCMAuthorised software policies
Contingency PlanningCPAlternate processing & storage sites – Business continuity strategies
Identification and AuthenticationIAAuthentication policies for users, devices & services – credential management
Individual ParticipationIPConsent & privacy authorization
Incident ResponseIRIncident response training, monitoring & reporting
MaintenanceMASystem, personnel & tool maintenance
Media ProtectionMPAccess, storage, transport, sanitisation & use of media
Privacy AuthorizationPACollection, use & sharing of personally identifiable information
Physical and Environment ProtectionPEPhysical access – Emergency power – Fire protection – Temperature control
PlanningPLSocial media & networking restrictions – Defence-in-depth security architecture
Program ManagementPMRisk management strategy – Insider threat program – Enterprise architecture
Personnel SecurityPSPersonnel screening, termination & transfer – External personnel – Sanctions
Risk AssessmentRARisk assessment – Vulnerability scanning – Privacy impact assessment
System and Services AcquisitionSASystem development lifecycle – Acquisition process – Supply chain risk management
System and Communications ProtectionSCApplication partitioning – Boundary protection – Cryptographic key management
System and Information IntegritySIFlaw remediation – System monitoring & Alerting

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What Revision of NIST SP 800-53 Are We On?

First Revision

NIST SP 800-53 Revision 1 was released in December 2006 as “Recommended Security Controls for Federal Information Systems.”

Second Revision

NIST SP 800-53 Revision 2 was released in December 2007 as “Recommended Security Controls for Federal Information Systems.”

Third Revision

NIST SP 800-53 Revision 3 was released in August 2009 as “Recommended Security Controls for Federal Information Systems and Organizations.”. This version incorporates several recommendations from people who commented on previously published versions.

It was recommended a reduction in number of security controls for low impact systems. Also, suggest a new set of application-level controls and greater powers for organisations to downgrade controls.

Changes brought in by revision 3:

Fourth Revision

NIST SP 800-53 Revision 4 was released initially in February 2012 as “Security and Privacy Controls for Federal Information Systems and Organisations”.

Revision 4 included updates to security controls, supplemental guidance and control enhancements. It also updated tailoring and supplementation guidance that form elements in the control selection process.

Fifth Revision

NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 was initially discussed in August 2017 and removed “federal” from “Security and Privacy Controls for Federal Information Systems and Organisations” to denote that regulations may be applied to all organisations, rather than just federal organisations. The final version of Revision 5 was released in September 2020.

Some changes in this version include:

  • The structure of the controls was changed, making security and privacy controls more outcome-based.
  • Integrating privacy controls into the security control catalogue to create a consolidated and unified set of controls for systems and organisations.
  • The controls can be used by different communities of interest, including systems engineers, software developers, enterprise architects, and mission/business owners. This was achieved by separating the control selection process from the actual controls.
  • The term “information security” was removed and replaced with “system” so relevant controls can be applied to any type of system.
  • Less emphasis on a federal focus to promote greater use by non-federal organisations.
  • Promoting integration with other cyber security and risk management approaches.
  • More clarification on security and privacy relationships to improve the selection of controls to address the full scope of privacy and security risks.

NIST SP 800-53A And NIST SP 800-53B

NIST SP 800-53A

NIST SP 800-53A contains a set of procedures for conducting assessments of security controls and privacy controls within federal systems and organisations.

The procedures can be easily tailored to give organisations the flexibility to conduct security control assessments and privacy control assessments aligned with the organisation’s stated risk tolerance.

Guidance on analysing assessment results is provided, with information on building effective security and privacy assessment plans.

NIST SP 800-53B

NIST SP 800-53B provides baseline security controls and privacy controls for information systems.

Guidance is provided on analysing assessment results and information on building effective security assessment plans.

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Who Must Comply With NIST 800-53?

It’s mandatory for federal information systems to use the standard. To maintain the relationship, any organisation that works with the federal government must comply with NIST SP 800-53.

The standard provides a framework for any organisation to develop, maintain and improve their information security practices, including state, local, tribal governments and private companies.

Federal agencies need to be compliant with the latest revision of NIST SP 800-53 within one year of the release of the new revision, and new systems need to be compliant at the time of deployment.

How Does NIST SP 800-53 Relate to FISMA?

NIST SP 800-53 helps organisations of all shapes and sizes comply with the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA). There is an extensive catalogue of controls to strengthen security.

The purpose of the FISMA is to protect against unauthorised access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, and destruction of government information and assets.

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How Can ISO 27001 Help You Comply With NIST SP 800-53?

It’s a common misconception that an organisation must choose between NIST SP 800-53 or ISO 27001 and that one is better than the other. Both of them can be used within an organisation and have a lot of synergies between them. Data security, risk assessments, and security programs are under the scope of both ISO 27001 and NIST SP 800-53.

The NIST frameworks were made voluntary and flexible. They have several common principles, including requiring senior management support, a continual improvement process, and a risk-based approach, making it easy to implement them in conjunction with ISO 27001.

The risk assessment process specified by ISO 27001 takes a very similar approach to NIST SP 800-53. Controls appropriate to the risk, identifying risks to the organisation’s information, and monitoring their performance are necessary under both.

NIST vs ISO 27001: What’s the Difference?

ISO/IEC 27001 (International Organization for Standardization)NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology)
ISO 27001 is an internationally recognised approach to establishing and maintaining an information security management system (ISMS).The creation of NIST was to help US federal agencies and organisations better manage their risk.
ISO 27001 is less technical with more emphasis on risk-based management that provides best practice recommendations for securing all information.The framework’s three main components are the core, implementation tiers and profiles, which are the activities necessary to fulfil each function.
There are 14 control categories and 114 controls in the ISO 27001 annex A.NIST frameworks have various control catalogues.
There are ten clauses in the ISO 27001 that guide organisations through their ISMS journey.The NIST framework has five functions that can be used to modify and customise cyber security controls.
Independent audit and certification bodies are used for ensuring ISO 27001 compliance.NIST has a self-certification mechanism that is voluntary.

How Can ISMS.Online Help You Achieve Compliance With NIST 800-53?

ISMS.online is continually evolving to meet the information security, privacy and business continuity needs of organisations across the globe. Our simplified, secure, sustainable platform supports far more than just ISO/IEC 27001. As our platform grows, so does the list of standards and regulations we support.

Plus, our platform comes with various pre-built frameworks you can adopt, adapt, or add to depending on your organisation’s unique needs. Or you can easily build your own for bespoke compliance projects.

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NIST SP 800-53 FAQs

What Data Does NIST SP 800-53 Protect?

The data on federal networks may include sensitive information that is essential to the ongoing function of the US government.

It could include user’s private data, known as personally identifiable information, which is also important to safeguard that is protected by NIST SP 800-171.

NIST SP 800-53 is a systematic approach to protecting information and computing systems.

The systems include:

  • Mobile systems
  • Systems & networks that control industry processes
  • Healthcare systems
  • Cloud computing
  • Internet of Things devices
  • Computing systems

The types of data that can be protected will vary due to the diversity of systems and organisations.

Tips for NIST SP 800-53 Compliance

Selecting and implementing appropriate security and privacy controls for NIST 800-53 SP compliance is helped by the following best practices.

  • Find out what kind of data your organisation has and how it is received, maintained and transmitted. It is possible for sensitive data to be spread across multiple applications when it is not necessary.
  • It is necessary to class the sensitive data. The data should be categorised and labelled according to its value and sensitivity. For each security objective, assign a low, moderate or high impact value to each information type, and then categorise it at the highest impact level. FIPS 199 has security categories and impact levels that relate to your goals and objectives. Automate discovery and classification to make the process more efficient.
  • Take a risk assessment to evaluate your level of security. Risk assessment involves identifying risks, assessing the probability of their occurrence and their potential impact, taking steps to mitigate those risks, and then assessing the effectiveness of those steps.
  • If you want to improve your policies and procedures, you should document a plan. The controls you choose will be based on your business needs. The impact level of the risk being mitigated should be taken into account when determining the extent and rigor of the selection process. Take the time to document your plan and rationale for each choice of control and policy.
  • The training should be ongoing. All employees should be educated on how to identify and report cyberattacks.
  • An ongoing process of compliance. You should maintain and improve your compliance with regular system audits after you have brought your system into compliance.

When Was NIST SP 800-53 Released?

NIST SP 800-53 was initially released in February 2005. Aptly named as “Recommended Security Controls for Federal Information Systems.”

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