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MA-5(2) MA · Maintenance

Security Clearances for Classified Systems

LOW MODERATE HIGH
1 Overlay 1 Related Control
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Requirements NIST SOURCE

Verify that personnel performing maintenance and diagnostic activities on a system processing, storing, or transmitting classified information possess security clearances and formal access approvals for at least the highest classification level and for compartments of information on the system.

Discussion (NIST Supplemental Guidance)

Personnel who conduct maintenance on organizational systems may be exposed to classified information during the course of their maintenance activities. To mitigate the inherent risk of such exposure, organizations use maintenance personnel that are cleared (i.e., possess security clearances) to the classification level of the information stored on the system.

Implementation Guidance

Engineering Interpretation

Original engineering commentary written for this explorer — not NIST source text and not authoritative guidance.

No engineering interpretation has been authored for MA-5(2) yet. This section is architected to receive it — see the Requirements and Assessment sections above for the authoritative NIST source content in the meantime.

Assessment

NIST SP 800-53A REV 5.2.0

Assessment Objectives

  1. personnel performing maintenance and diagnostic activities on a system processing, storing, or transmitting classified information possess security clearances for at least the highest classification level and for compartments of information on the system;
  2. personnel performing maintenance and diagnostic activities on a system processing, storing, or transmitting classified information possess formal access approvals for at least the highest classification level and for compartments of information on the system.

Examine

[SELECT FROM: Maintenance policy; procedures addressing maintenance personnel; personnel records; maintenance records; access control records; access credentials; access authorizations; system security plan; other relevant documents or records].

Interview

[SELECT FROM: Organizational personnel with system maintenance responsibilities; organizational personnel with personnel security responsibilities; organizational personnel with physical access control responsibilities; organizational personnel with information security responsibilities].

Test

[SELECT FROM: Organizational processes for managing security clearances for maintenance personnel].

Overlays

Showing the OT/ICS overlay for the parent control MA-5 — see the MA-5(2) entries within each baseline below.

OT/ICS Overlay SP 800-82r3

NIST SP 800-82r3 Appendix F, Table 22. Blank baseline means the control/control enhancement is not selected in that initial OT baseline.

LOW

  • Base control: Included (matches standard baseline)

MODERATE

  • Base control: Included (matches standard baseline)

HIGH

  • Base control: Included (matches standard baseline)
  • Included: (1)

STIGs & CCIs

No STIG checks or CCI mappings are currently loaded for MA-5(2). This section is architected to display, per product: STIG ID, Finding ID, Severity, Title, Description, Check, Fix, CCI, and NIST control mapping — but nothing is populated here until a real DISA STIG/CCI dataset is ingested.

Learn more about STIG/CCI integration →

Evidence

Potential Evidence — Derived

Categorized from the SP 800-53A "Examine"/"Test" artifact list above by keyword — not an authoritative NIST evidence list.

Policy

  • Maintenance policy
  • system security plan

Testing

  • Organizational processes for managing security clearances for maintenance personnel

Other Records

  • procedures addressing maintenance personnel
  • personnel records
  • maintenance records
  • access control records
  • access credentials
  • access authorizations
  • other relevant documents or records