What is FedRAMP?
Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP), is a U.S. government-wide program established to provide a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for cloud products and services. It ensures that cloud solutions meet stringent federal security requirements to protect sensitive government data.
FedRAMP was designed to accelerate the adoption of secure cloud solutions across federal agencies while minimizing the time, cost, and effort associated with individual agency authorizations. It promotes the use of cloud computing by federal agencies while ensuring consistent application of security practices.
Purpose of FedRAMP
The primary purpose of FedRAMP is to create a unified and streamlined process for ensuring that cloud service providers (CSPs) comply with federal security requirements. Specifically, it aims to:
Enhance Cloud Security: Provide a comprehensive framework for securing cloud environments.
Promote Cloud Adoption: Encourage federal agencies to leverage cloud technologies by removing redundant security assessments.
Reduce Costs and Complexity: Eliminate duplicative efforts by allowing agencies to reuse previously authorized cloud services.
Facilitate Innovation: Allow CSPs to bring secure and innovative solutions to the government market faster.
Levels of FedRAMP Authorization
FedRAMP defines three impact levels based on the sensitivity of the data that cloud services handle:
Low Impact:
Designed for systems where the loss of confidentiality, integrity, or availability would have limited adverse effects on agency operations, assets, or individuals.
Examples: Public websites or services with minimal sensitivity.
Moderate Impact:
For systems that handle data where the loss could have a serious impact on operations, assets, or individuals.
Examples: Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and financial data.
High Impact:
Reserved for systems where data loss could have catastrophic effects on national security, agency operations, or individuals.
Examples: Defense systems, mission-critical operations, classified information.
Each level has increasingly stringent security requirements.
Certification vs. Attestation: What’s Required for FedRAMP?
FedRAMP Certification is a colloquial term, but the formal process involves obtaining a FedRAMP Authorization to Operate (ATO). There are two paths to achieve authorization:
Agency Authorization: A federal agency sponsors the cloud service provider and grants an ATO after the provider meets FedRAMP requirements.
Joint Authorization Board (JAB) Authorization: The JAB, a group comprising representatives from the Department of Defense (DoD), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and General Services Administration (GSA), performs the security assessment and issues the authorization.
Once a CSP is authorized, its services are listed in the FedRAMP Marketplace, making them available for reuse by other federal agencies.
Oversight and Enforcement of FedRAMP
Oversight: FedRAMP is managed by the FedRAMP Program Management Office (PMO) under the GSA. The JAB plays a key role in reviewing and approving high-impact systems.
Enforcement: While FedRAMP itself doesn’t impose penalties, compliance is enforced by the contracting agency. Noncompliance can result in contract termination, loss of business, and reputational damage.
Key Provisions of FedRAMP
Standardized Security Requirements: FedRAMP aligns with NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) Special Publication 800-53 controls, ensuring a robust security framework.
Continuous Monitoring: CSPs must regularly update their security documentation and undergo periodic assessments to maintain compliance.
Third-Party Assessments: Independent third-party assessment organizations (3PAOs) evaluate CSPs for compliance.
Reusability: Agencies can reuse an existing FedRAMP authorization, reducing the need for repetitive assessments.
Incident Reporting: CSPs must report security incidents promptly to the sponsoring agency and the FedRAMP PMO.
Industries Impacted by FedRAMP
While FedRAMP is primarily targeted at cloud services for federal agencies, its influence extends to industries that:
Provide technology services to the government.
Process sensitive government data.
Engage in public sector contracts.
Industries like IT, telecommunications, defense contracting, and health care often interact with FedRAMP due to their involvement with federal operations.
Penalties for Noncompliance with FedRAMP
FedRAMP itself doesn’t impose direct fines, but noncompliance can have severe consequences, including:
Contract Termination: Federal agencies may terminate contracts with noncompliant CSPs.
Suspension from the FedRAMP Marketplace: CSPs can lose their authorization, impacting their ability to do business with federal agencies.
Legal and Financial Repercussions: CSPs may face lawsuits or damages if a breach occurs due to noncompliance.
Reputational Damage: Noncompliance can harm a company’s credibility and market standing.
Employee Responsibilities for FedRAMP Compliance
To help organizations comply with FedRAMP, employees at various levels should:
Understand FedRAMP Requirements: Gain familiarity with the framework, especially NIST 800-53 controls.
Participate in Training: Regular training ensures employees understand their role in maintaining compliance.
Implement Security Best Practices: Follow strict data handling protocols and incident response procedures.
Support Continuous Monitoring: Actively participate in the monitoring and updating of security systems and documentation.
Report Security Incidents: Promptly escalate any potential breaches or vulnerabilities.
Best Practices for Compliance with FedRAMP
Engage Early with the PMO: Involve the FedRAMP PMO early in the authorization process to understand requirements and expectations.
Work with a 3PAO: Partner with an experienced third-party assessment organization to ensure thorough evaluations.
Document Everything: Maintain meticulous records of security measures, assessments, and updates.
Automate Continuous Monitoring: Use tools to automate the monitoring of security controls and reporting to ensure efficiency.
Regularly Update Policies: Stay current with updates to FedRAMP and NIST guidelines.
Engage with Sponsors: Build strong relationships with agency sponsors to facilitate smoother authorization and compliance processes.
How databrackets can help you prove your compliance with FedRAMP
There are 2 distinctive components of FedRAMP Certification:
1) Readiness Phase where all of applicable NIST 800-53 controls are reviewed to ensure that the required plans, procedures and technical controls are in place
2) Engaging with a 3PAO for an audit.
databrackets can help your organization with either one of these engagements as we are not authorized to help with both for the same client. We are a 3PAO candidate and expected to receive our authorization by the end of Q1 in 2025.
Schedule a Consultation if you would like to Connect with an Expert to understand how we can customize our services to meet your specific requirements.
Overview of databrackets
Our team of security experts has supported organizations across a wide variety of industries to align their processes with security frameworks like ISO 27001:2022, SOC 2, HIPAA, 21 CFR Part 11, NIST SP 800-53, NIST Cybersecurity Framework, NIST SP 800-171, GDPR, CMMC etc. We are an authorized certifying body for ISO 27001 and a Registered Practitioner Organization for CMMC. We also have partnerships to help clients prepare for and obtain other security certifications.
We are constantly expanding our library of assessments and services to serve organizations across industries. Schedule a Consultation if you would like to Connect with an Expert to understand how we can customize our services to meet your specific requirements.
Author: Aditi Salhotra, Digital Marketing and Business Development, databrackets.com
Aditi is a Digital Marketing and Business Development Professional at databrackets.com. She graduated with honors in Marketing from Sheridan College, Canada. In addition to her current profile, she contributes to Product Development and Content Creation. She is a strong advocate of Good Cyber Hygiene and white hat SEO techniques. She is proud of the company’s mission to safeguard organizations from cyber threats and ensure their business continuity in adverse situations.
Technical Expert: Srini Kolathur, Director, databrackets.com
The technical information presented in this blog has been carefully reviewed and verified by our Director, Srini Kolathur. Srini is results-driven security and compliance professional with over 20 years of experience supporting, leading, and managing global IT security, compliance, support, and risk assessment in fortune 100 companies. Some of his key areas of focus are SOC 2, ISO 27001, NIST 800-171, NIST 800-53, NIST Cybersecurity Framework, HIPAA, Security Risk Assessment, CMMC 2.0 among others. He is a CMMC Registered Practitioner (RP), CISSP, CISA, CISM, MBA. He is active in several community groups including Rotary International and TiE.