Overview
  1. 03.01: Access Control
  2. 03.02: Awareness and Training
  3. 03.03: Audit and Accountability
  4. 03.04: Configuration Management
  5. 03.05: Identification and Authentication
  6. 03.06: Incident Response
  7. 03.07: Maintenance
  8. 03.08: Media Protection
  9. 03.09: Personnel Security
  10. 03.10: Physical Protection
  11. 03.11: Risk Assessment
  12. 03.12: Security Assessment
  13. 03.13: System and Communications Protection
  14. 03.14: System and Information Integrity

Security Requirements for 03.14.05 System & File Scanning

Periodic scans of organizational systems and real-time scans of files from external sources can detect malicious code. Malicious code can be encoded in various formats (e.g., UUENCODE, Unicode), contained within compressed or hidden files, or hidden in files using techniques such as steganography. Malicious code can be inserted into systems in a variety of ways including web accesses, electronic mail, electronic mail attachments, and portable storage devices. Malicious code insertions occur through the exploitation of system vulnerabilities.

Assessment GuidanceExamine 0/12

How an assessor determines this requirement is met. Source: CMMC Assessment Guide – Level 2, Version 2.13 (NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2).

Discussion

Use anti-malware software to scan for and identify viruses in your computer systems and determine how often scans are conducted. Real-time scans look at the system whenever new files are downloaded, opened, and saved. Periodic scans check previously saved files against updated malware information.

Examples

  1. Example 1

    You work with your company’s email provider to enable enhanced protections that will scan all attachments to identify and quarantine those that may be harmful prior to a user opening them [c]. In addition, you configure antivirus software on each computer to scan for malicious code every day [a, b]. The software also scans files that are downloaded or copied from removable media such as USB drives. It quarantines any suspicious files and notifies the security team [c].

Assessment Methods

Examine
The process of reviewing, inspecting, observing, studying, or analyzing assessment objects (e.g., policies, procedures, plans, system designs, mechanisms) to facilitate understanding, achieve clarification, or obtain evidence.Example: An assessor reads the access control policy and inspects system configuration settings to confirm they match.

Not all of the evidence listed is required to meet this requirement — check the items your organization has collected.

Interview
The process of holding discussions with individuals or groups within an organization to facilitate understanding, achieve clarification, or identify the location of evidence.Example: An assessor asks a system administrator to describe how user accounts are approved, reviewed, and disabled.
  • System or network administrators
  • Personnel with information security responsibilities
  • Personnel installing, configuring, and maintaining the system
  • Personnel with responsibility for malicious code protection
  • Personnel with configuration management responsibility
Test
The process of exercising assessment objects (e.g., activities, mechanisms) under specified conditions to compare actual behavior with expected behavior.Example: An assessor attempts to sign in with a disabled account to confirm that access is denied.
  • Organizational processes for employing, updating, and configuring malicious code protection mechanisms
  • Organizational process for addressing false positives and resulting potential impact
  • Mechanisms supporting or implementing malicious code protection mechanisms (including updates and configurations)
  • Mechanisms supporting or implementing malicious code scanning and subsequent actions

Potential Assessment Considerations

  • Are files from media (e.g., USB drives, CD-ROM) included in the definition of external sources and are they being scanned [c]?

Key References

NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2 3.14.5FAR Clause 52.204-21 b.1.xv

Evidence

  1. 03.14.05.a

    The frequency for malicious code scans is defined

  1. 03.14.05.b

    Malicious code scans are performed with the defined frequency

  1. 03.14.05.c

    Real-time malicious code scans of files from external sources as files are downloaded, opened, or executed are performed