03.15.03Rules of Behavior in Rev. 3
New in Revision 3 — no Revision 2 equivalent. Nothing in NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2 maps onto this number, so it has no Rev. 2 page and no side-by-side; the Rev. 3 text is below in full. It carries organization-defined parameters.
Status as of 2026-09-08
Rev. 2 is what a contract requires today. DFARS 252.204-7012 and the CMMC rule at 32 CFR 170 point at NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2, and a standing DoD class deviation keeps it there. NIST has published Rev. 3, but publishing a revision does not change an obligation. A move to Rev. 3 would arrive through the Department's reform process and formal rulemaking, a change to that deviation or an amendment to the rule, not through publication. The Department has published its organization-defined parameter values for Rev. 3 in preparation; that is groundwork, not adoption.
The requirement
Rev. 3 · not adopted 03.15.03 Rules of Behavior
a. Establish rules that describe the responsibilities and expected behavior for system usage and protecting CUI.
b. Provide rules to individuals who require access to the system.
c. Receive a documented acknowledgement from individuals indicating that they have read, understand, and agree to abide by the rules of behavior before authorizing access to CUI and the system.
d. Review and update the rules of behavior [Assignment: organization-defined frequency].
NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 3, verbatim, with organization-defined blanks highlighted. Rev. 2 has no counterpart to place beside it.
Determination statements
What an assessor would check under NIST SP 800-171A Rev. 3. 5 statements, each one answered yes or no.
- 03.15.03.a rules that describe responsibilities and expected behavior for system usage and protecting CUI are established.
- 03.15.03.b rules are provided to individuals who require access to the system.
- 03.15.03.c a documented acknowledgement from individuals indicating that they have read, understand, and agree to abide by the rules of behavior is received before authorizing access to CUI and the system.
- 03.15.03.d[01] the rules of behavior are reviewed <A.03.15.03.ODP[01]: frequency>.
- 03.15.03.d[02] the rules of behavior are updated <A.03.15.03.ODP[01]: frequency>.
NIST SP 800-171A Rev. 3, verbatim.
Organization-defined parameters
Blanks the organization fills in. Defining each value is itself a determination in 800-171A Rev. 3.
- A.03.15.03.ODP[01] the frequency at which the rules of behavior are reviewed and updated is defined.
What NIST says
- New security requirement based on PL-4 (SP 800-53, Rev 5); formerly tailored as "NFO"
- Added new ODP: frequency to review and update rules of behavior
NIST, SP 800-171 Rev. 2 to Rev. 3 change analysis, class “New requirement”. At adoption, Bedrock files this under “New”.
NIST's Rev. 3 discussion for 03.15.03
Rules of behavior represent a type of access agreement for system users. Organizations consider rules of behavior for the handling of CUI based on individual user roles and responsibilities and differentiate between rules that apply to privileged users and rules that apply to general users.
Planning in Rev. 3
PL Planning is one of the three families Rev. 3 adds; none of its requirements has a Rev. 2 number.
What this means for you now
Nothing. Until a class deviation or a published rule adopts Rev. 3, no assessor asks about 03.15.03 and SPRS has no score for it. If you already do what it describes, note where the evidence lives and what value you use for the parameters above; that costs nothing and answers the question later.
Bedrock CMMC carries the Rev. 3 catalog beside your Rev. 2 package, so the day adoption lands the new requirements are a to-do list, not a surprise.
Where this page's facts come from
- Rev. 3 03.15.03 text, determination statements, parameters, class and note
- bedrock-cmmc-api@89b8e8e:docs/reference/nist-800-171-rev3/normalized/rev3.json#requirements[]