Federal Information Security Standard

A Federal Information Security Standard is a government-mandated security standard that establishes requirements for protecting federal information systems.

• AKA: Federal Security Standard, Government Information Security Standard, Federal Cybersecurity Standard, U.S. Government Security Standard, Federal IT Security Standard.
• Context:
  • It can typically be developed by National Institute of Standards and Technology or other federal authority.
  • It can typically mandate Security Control Implementation for federal agencys and federal contractors.
  • It can typically align with Federal Information Security Management Act requirements.
  • It can often provide Implementation Guidance and assessment procedures.
  • It can often undergo Periodic Revision to address emerging threats.
  • It can range from being a Baseline Federal Information Security Standard to being an Enhanced Federal Information Security Standard, depending on its security requirement level.
  • It can range from being a General Federal Information Security Standard to being a Sector-Specific Federal Information Security Standard, depending on its application domain.
  • It can range from being a Technical Federal Information Security Standard to being a Administrative Federal Information Security Standard, depending on its control type.
  • It can range from being a Mandatory Federal Information Security Standard to being a Recommended Federal Information Security Standard, depending on its compliance requirement.
  • It can integrate with Risk Management Frameworks for security implementation.
  • It can support Federal Compliance Audits through measurable requirements.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • NIST Special Publications, such as:
    • NIST SP 800-88 Guideline for media sanitization.
    • NIST SP 800-171 for controlled unclassified information protection.
    • NIST SP 800-53 for security and privacy controls.
  • FIPS Publications, such as:
    • FIPS 140 Standard for cryptographic module validation.
    • FIPS 199 for security categorization.
    • FIPS 200 for minimum security requirements.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Industry Security Standard, which is developed by private sector organizations.
  • International Security Standard, which applies across multiple nations.
  • Proprietary Security Standard, which is owned by commercial entitys.
• See: Government Security Requirement, NIST Publication, Federal Information Security Management Act, Cybersecurity Framework, Risk Management Framework, Security Control Catalog, Compliance Assessment, Federal Regulation, Information Assurance Standard, Government Certification Program.

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