RA-5(5)_privileged-access

RA-5(5) Privileged Access

Enhancement of: RA-5

High-Level Description

Family: Risk Assessment (RA) Framework: NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5

In certain situations, the nature of the vulnerability scanning may be more intrusive, or the system component that is the subject of the scanning may contain classified or controlled unclassified information, such as personally identifiable information. Privileged access authorization to selected system components facilitates more thorough vulnerability scanning and protects the sensitive nature of such scanning.

What to Check

• Verify RA-5(5) Privileged Access is documented in SSP
• Confirm control is operating effectively
• Review evidence of continuous monitoring for RA-5(5)
• Verify enhancement builds upon base control RA-5

How to Test

Step 1: Review Documentation

Examine the System Security Plan (SSP) and related artifacts for RA-5(5) implementation details. Verify the organization has documented how this control is satisfied.

Step 2: Validate Implementation

# For cloud environments, use cloud-audit-mcp tools
# For on-premises, review system configurations directly

# Example: Check if account management policies exist
grep -r "account.management\|access.control" /etc/security/ 2>/dev/null

Step 3: Test Operating Effectiveness

Verify the control is actively functioning, not just documented. Check logs, configurations, and operational evidence.

Tools

Remediation Guide

Control Statement

Implement privileged access authorization to [organization-defined] for [organization-defined].

Implementation Guidance

In certain situations, the nature of the vulnerability scanning may be more intrusive, or the system component that is the subject of the scanning may contain classified or controlled unclassified information, such as personally identifiable information. Privileged access authorization to selected system components facilitates more thorough vulnerability scanning and protects the sensitive nature of such scanning.

Risk Assessment

CWE Categories

References

• NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 - RA-5(5)
• NIST SP 800-53A Rev 5 (Assessment Procedures)
• NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 Full Catalog

Checklist

• Control documented in SSP
• Implementation evidence collected
• Operating effectiveness validated
• Continuous monitoring in place
• Related controls (none) reviewed