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3.7.2Control maintenance tools and who uses them

Diagnostic tools, techniques, and the personnel using them are controlled.

The requirement, verbatim

NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2 · 3.7.2

Provide controls on the tools, techniques, mechanisms, and personnel used to conduct system maintenance.

Requirement 3.7.2, practice name in the CMMC assessment guide: System Maintenance Control.

NIST's discussion

This requirement addresses security-related issues with maintenance tools that are not within the organizational system boundaries that process, store, or transmit CUI, but are used specifically for diagnostic and repair actions on those systems. Organizations have flexibility in determining the controls in place for maintenance tools, but can include approving, controlling, and monitoring the use of such tools. Maintenance tools are potential vehicles for transporting malicious code, either intentionally or unintentionally, into a facility and into organizational systems. Maintenance tools can include hardware, software, and firmware items, for example, hardware and software diagnostic test equipment and hardware and software packet sniffers.

NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2, discussion under 3.7.2. Whitespace normalised; wording unchanged.

Assessment objectives

An assessor decides each of these separately. The requirement is met only when every objective is.

  1. [a] maintenance tools used on the system are controlled
  2. [b] maintenance techniques used on the system are controlled
  3. [c] maintenance mechanisms used on the system are controlled
  4. [d] maintenance personnel performing maintenance on the system are controlled

NIST SP 800-171A, determination statements for 3.7.2.

For assessors: examine, interview, test

NIST SP 800-171A names what an assessor may examine, whom they may interview, and what they may test for this requirement. Assessors select from these lists; they are not a checklist of everything you must produce.

Examine
  • System maintenance policy
  • procedures addressing system maintenance tools and media
  • maintenance records
  • system maintenance tools and associated documentation
  • maintenance tool inspection records
  • system security plan
  • other relevant documents or records
Interview
  • Personnel with system maintenance responsibilities
  • personnel with information security responsibilities
Test
  • Organizational processes for approving, controlling, and monitoring maintenance tools
  • mechanisms supporting or implementing approval, control, and monitoring of maintenance tools
  • organizational processes for inspecting maintenance tools
  • mechanisms supporting or implementing inspection of maintenance tools
  • organizational process for inspecting media for malicious code
  • mechanisms supporting or implementing inspection of media used for maintenance

NIST SP 800-171A, potential assessment methods and objects for 3.7.2.

Evidence

No evidence examples are published for this requirement yet. The objectives above are what an assessor checks; evidence is whatever shows each one is true in your environment, dated and kept with your system security plan.

Scoring weight

Worth 5 points. Not meeting this requirement subtracts 5 from your 110-point SPRS score. These are the requirements with the largest effect on your posture.

DoD NIST SP 800-171 Assessment Methodology v1.2.1 weighting, as carried in the Bedrock scoring table. The score starts at 110 and subtracts the weight of every requirement not met.

In Rev. 3

Rev. 2 is what your contract requires today. A standing DoD class deviation keeps Rev. 2 in force; NIST has published Rev. 3, but it is not adopted for contracts. In Rev. 3 this requirement is withdrawn and incorporated elsewhere: 03.07.04 Maintenance Tools, 03.07.06 Maintenance Personnel.

See the Rev. 2 and Rev. 3 wording word by word, or start with the status page.

Where this page's facts come from
Requirement text
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:migrations/004_reference_requirements.sql#Requirement.basicRequirement@rev2
Discussion
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:migrations/004_reference_requirements.sql#Requirement.discussion@rev2
Practice name
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:migrations/004_reference_requirements.sql#Requirement.title@rev2 (CMMC Assessment Guide practice name)
Objectives
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:migrations/005_reference_objectives.sql#AssessmentObjective.description@rev2
Examine, interview, test
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:migrations/005_reference_objectives.sql#AssessmentObjective.description@rev2 ({examineGuidance, interviewGuidance, testGuidance})
Level
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:migrations/021_fix_level1_requirements.sql#Requirement.cmmcLevel@rev2
Weight
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:internal/cmmc/requirement_values.go#requirementValues (DoD AM v1.2.1 / eMASS L2 template v3.8)
Rev. 3 mapping
bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:docs/reference/nist-800-171-rev3/normalized/r2_r3_transition_map.json#r2_to_r3
Plain-language title and summary
editorial/CMMC Navigator.dc.html#RAW (Foxx Cyber editorial)