PW.4.1_pw41

PW.4.1 PW.4.1

Task of practice: Reuse Existing, Well-Secured Software When Feasible Instead of Duplicating Functionality (PW.4)

High-Level Description

Practice Group: Produce Well-Secured Software (PW) Framework: NIST SP 800-218 SSDF v1.1

Acquire and maintain well-secured software components (e.g., software libraries, modules, middleware, frameworks) from commercial, open-source, and other third-party developers for use by the organization’s software.

What to Check

• Verify PW.4.1 PW.4.1 is integrated into SDLC
• Review CI/CD pipeline for PW.4.1 implementation
• Confirm automated tooling supports this practice

How to Test

Step 1: Review SDLC Documentation

Examine development lifecycle documentation for evidence of PW.4.1 practice implementation.

Step 2: Verify Tooling

# Check CI/CD pipeline configuration
# Verify security tools are integrated

# Example: Check for SAST/DAST in pipeline
grep -r "security\|scan\|sast\|dast" .github/workflows/ 2>/dev/null
grep -r "security\|scan" Jenkinsfile 2>/dev/null

Step 3: Assess Developer Awareness

Verify development team understands and follows PW.4.1 PW.4.1 practice.

Tools

Remediation Guide

Implement PW.4.1 PW.4.1 in the software development lifecycle:

Acquire and maintain well-secured software components (e.g., software libraries, modules, middleware, frameworks) from commercial, open-source, and other third-party developers for use by the organization’s software.

Risk Assessment

CWE Categories

References

• NIST SP 800-218 SSDF v1.1
• NIST SSDF Practices
• NIST OSCAL Content

Checklist

• Practice documented in SDLC policy
• Tooling configured and operational
• Development team trained
• Evidence of consistent application
• Periodic review scheduled