Performance Security
LOW MODERATE HIGHRequirements NIST SOURCE
Implement the security design principle of performance security in [systems or system components].
Discussion (NIST Supplemental Guidance)
The principle of performance security states that security mechanisms are constructed so that they do not degrade system performance unnecessarily. Stakeholder and system design requirements for performance and security are precisely articulated and prioritized. For the system implementation to meet its design requirements and be found acceptable to stakeholders (i.e., validation against stakeholder requirements), the designers adhere to the specified constraints that capability performance needs place on protection needs. The overall impact of computationally intensive security services (e.g., cryptography) are assessed and demonstrated to pose no significant impact to higher-priority performance considerations or are deemed to provide an acceptable trade-off of performance for trustworthy protection. The trade-off considerations include less computationally intensive security services unless they are unavailable or insufficient. The insufficiency of a security service is determined by functional capability and strength of mechanism. The strength of mechanism is selected with respect to security requirements, performance-critical overhead issues (e.g., cryptographic key management), and an assessment of the capability of the threat. The principle of performance security leads to the incorporation of features that help in the enforcement of security policy but incur minimum overhead, such as low-level hardware mechanisms upon which higher-level services can be built. Such low-level mechanisms are usually very specific, have very limited functionality, and are optimized for performance. For example, once access rights to a portion of memory is granted, many systems use hardware mechanisms to ensure that all further accesses involve the correct memory address and access mode. Application of this principle reinforces the need to design security into the system from the ground up and to incorporate simple mechanisms at the lower layers that can be used as building blocks for higher-level mechanisms.
Implementation Guidance
Original engineering commentary written for this explorer — not NIST source text and not authoritative guidance.
No engineering interpretation has been authored for SA-8(26) 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
Assessment Objectives
- systems or system components that implement the security design principle of performance security are defined;
- <SA-08(26)_ODP systems or system components> implement the security design principle of performance security.
Examine
[SELECT FROM: System and services acquisition policy; procedures addressing the security design principle of performance security used in the specification, design, development, implementation, and modification of the system; system design documentation; security and privacy requirements and specifications for the system; system security and privacy architecture; trade-off analysis between performance and security; system security plan; other relevant documents or records].
Interview
[SELECT FROM: Organizational personnel with the responsibility for determining system security and privacy requirements; organizational personnel with system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification responsibilities; system developers; organizational personnel with information security responsibilities].
Test
[SELECT FROM: Organizational processes for applying the security design principle of performance security in system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification; mechanisms supporting the application of the security design principle of performance security in system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification].
Overlays
STIGs & CCIs
No STIG checks or CCI mappings are currently loaded for SA-8(26). 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
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
- system security and privacy architecture
Testing
- Organizational processes for applying the security design principle of performance security in system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification
- mechanisms supporting the application of the security design principle of performance security in system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification
Other Records
- procedures addressing the security design principle of performance security used in the specification, design, development, implementation, and modification of the system
- security and privacy requirements and specifications for the system
- trade-off analysis between performance and security
- other relevant documents or records