SA-4(6)_use-of-information-assurance-products

SA-4(6) Use of Information Assurance Products

Enhancement of: SA-4

High-Level Description

Family: System and Services Acquisition (SA) Framework: NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5

Commercial off-the-shelf IA or IA-enabled information technology products used to protect classified information by cryptographic means may be required to use NSA-approved key management. See NSA CSFC.

What to Check

• Verify SA-4(6) Use of Information Assurance Products is documented in SSP
• Validate all 2 control requirements are implemented
• Confirm control is operating effectively
• Review evidence of continuous monitoring for SA-4(6)
• Verify enhancement builds upon base control SA-4

How to Test

Step 1: Review Documentation

Examine the System Security Plan (SSP) and related artifacts for SA-4(6) 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

Employ only government off-the-shelf or commercial off-the-shelf information assurance and information assurance-enabled information technology products that compose an NSA-approved solution to protect classified information when the networks used to transmit the information are at a lower classification level than the information being transmitted; and Ensure that these products have been evaluated and/or validated by NSA or in accordance with NSA-approved procedures.

Implementation Guidance

Commercial off-the-shelf IA or IA-enabled information technology products used to protect classified information by cryptographic means may be required to use NSA-approved key management. See NSA CSFC.

Risk Assessment

CWE Categories

References

• NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 - SA-4(6)
• 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 (SC-8, SC-12, SC-13) reviewed