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SA-4(9) SA · System and Services Acquisition

Functions, Ports, Protocols, and Services in Use

LOW ✓ MODERATE ✓ HIGH
1 Overlay 2 Related Controls
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Requirements NIST SOURCE

Require the developer of the system, system component, or system service to identify the functions, ports, protocols, and services intended for organizational use.

Discussion (NIST Supplemental Guidance)

The identification of functions, ports, protocols, and services early in the system development life cycle (e.g., during the initial requirements definition and design stages) allows organizations to influence the design of the system, system component, or system service. This early involvement in the system development life cycle helps organizations avoid or minimize the use of functions, ports, protocols, or services that pose unnecessarily high risks and understand the trade-offs involved in blocking specific ports, protocols, or services or requiring system service providers to do so. Early identification of functions, ports, protocols, and services avoids costly retrofitting of controls after the system, component, or system service has been implemented. SA-9 describes the requirements for external system services. Organizations identify which functions, ports, protocols, and services are provided from external sources.

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 SA-4(9) 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. the developer of the system, system component, or system service is required to identify the functions intended for organizational use;
  2. the developer of the system, system component, or system service is required to identify the ports intended for organizational use;
  3. the developer of the system, system component, or system service is required to identify the protocols intended for organizational use;
  4. the developer of the system, system component, or system service is required to identify the services intended for organizational use.

Examine

[SELECT FROM: System and services acquisition policy; procedures addressing the integration of security requirements, descriptions, and criteria into the acquisition process; system design documentation; system documentation, including functions, ports, protocols, and services intended for organizational use; acquisition contracts for systems or services; acquisition documentation; solicitation documentation; service level agreements; organizational security requirements, descriptions, and criteria for developers of systems, system components, and system services; system security plan; other relevant documents or records].

Interview

[SELECT FROM: Organizational personnel with acquisition/contracting responsibilities; organizational personnel with the responsibility for determining system security requirements; system/network administrators; organizational personnel operating, using, and/or maintaining the system; system developers; organizational personnel with information security responsibilities].

Overlays

Showing the OT/ICS overlay for the parent control SA-4 — see the SA-4(9) 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)
  • Included: (10)
  • Added: (12)

MODERATE

  • Base control: Included (matches standard baseline)
  • Included: (1) (2) (9) (10)
  • Added: (12)

HIGH

  • Base control: Included (matches standard baseline)
  • Included: (1) (2) (5) (9) (10)
  • Added: (12)

STIGs & CCIs

No STIG checks or CCI mappings are currently loaded for SA-4(9). 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

  • System and services acquisition policy
  • system security plan

Configuration

  • system design documentation

Other Records

  • procedures addressing the integration of security requirements, descriptions, and criteria into the acquisition process
  • system documentation, including functions, ports, protocols, and services intended for organizational use
  • acquisition contracts for systems or services
  • acquisition documentation
  • solicitation documentation
  • service level agreements
  • organizational security requirements, descriptions, and criteria for developers of systems, system components, and system services
  • other relevant documents or records