NIST provides authoritative guidance on cybersecurity that forms the foundation for many organizational security programs and compliance frameworks.
Why it matters
- NIST frameworks are often required for U.S. federal contractors.
- Many compliance frameworks (FedRAMP, CMMC, StateRAMP) build on NIST standards.
- NIST guidelines represent security best practices recognized worldwide.
- Following NIST demonstrates due diligence for legal and regulatory purposes.
Key NIST publications
- NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF): Risk-based approach organized into Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, Recover functions.
- NIST SP 800-53: Comprehensive catalog of security controls for federal systems.
- NIST SP 800-171: Protecting Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) in non-federal systems.
- NIST SP 800-63: Digital identity guidelines covering authentication assurance levels.
- NIST SP 800-37: Risk Management Framework (RMF) for information systems.
NIST CSF 2.0 functions
- Govern: Establish cybersecurity risk management strategy and oversight.
- Identify: Understand assets, risks, and vulnerabilities.
- Protect: Implement safeguards to limit impact.
- Detect: Discover cybersecurity events quickly.
- Respond: Take action during incidents.
- Recover: Restore capabilities after incidents.
Getting started
- Assess current state against the CSF framework.
- Identify gaps and prioritize based on risk.
- Develop target profiles for desired security posture.
- Create action plans with measurable milestones.
- Regularly review and update as threats evolve.
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