Infrastructure Resilience Briefing — May 10, 2024
NIST finalized SP 800-171 Revision 3, adding advanced threat safeguards, supply-chain controls, and alignment with SP 800-172A for protecting controlled unclassified information.
Executive briefing: The National Institute of Standards and Technology released Special Publication 800-171 Revision 3 on May 10, 2024. The update refreshes security requirements for protecting controlled unclassified information (CUI) in nonfederal systems, incorporating advanced persistent threat safeguards from SP 800-172, supply-chain due diligence, and clarified assessment objectives. NIST simultaneously issued companion assessment procedures in SP 800-171A Revision 3.
Key changes
- Enhanced requirements. New controls address anomaly detection, continuous monitoring, and secure administration to counter sophisticated adversaries.
- Supply-chain focus. Organizations must vet external service providers, manage tampering risks, and document supplier security performance for CUI environments.
- Assessment clarity. Updated objectives align with SP 800-171A Rev. 3, simplifying preparation for Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) assessments.
Operational priorities
- Gap analysis. Map existing security programs against the revised requirements, prioritizing logging, continuous monitoring, and administrative control enhancements.
- Supplier engagement. Review managed service, cloud, and manufacturing partners to ensure CUI protections align with the new supply-chain safeguards.
- Assessment readiness. Update system security plans, plans of action and milestones, and evidence repositories to align with SP 800-171A Rev. 3 testing steps.
Program assurance
- Monitoring upgrades. Invest in security operations tooling that can deliver anomaly detection, centralized logging, and automated response in CUI enclaves.
- Training. Educate administrators and supplier contacts on new configuration baselines and supply-chain documentation expectations.
- Contract alignment. Update DFARS and subcontract clauses to reference Revision 3 requirements and ensure primes and subcontractors commit to the enhanced controls.
Sources
- NIST News — NIST Updates Guidance for Protecting Controlled Unclassified Information
- NIST SP 800-171 Revision 3
- NIST SP 800-171A Revision 3
Zeph Tech is updating CUI compliance programs with Revision 3 control mappings, supplier attestations, and assessment evidence packs.