V-288254

Discussion

Without protection of the transmitted information, confidentiality and integrity may be compromised since unprotected communications can be intercepted and either read or altered. This requirement applies only to those applications that are either distributed or that can allow access to data nonlocally. Use of this requirement will be limited to situations where the data owner has a strict requirement for ensuring data integrity and confidentiality is maintained at every step of the data transfer and handling process. When transmitting data, applications need to leverage transmission protection mechanisms, such as Transport Layer Security (TLS), TLS VPNs, or IPsec. Communication paths outside the physical protection of a controlled boundary are exposed to the possibility of interception and modification. Protecting the confidentiality and integrity of organizational information can be accomplished by physical means (e.g., employing physical distribution systems) or by logical means (e.g., employing cryptographic techniques). If physical means of protection are employed, then logical means (cryptography) do not have to be employed, and vice versa.

Check Content

Review the application documentation and deployed configuration to determine whether the application's cryptography mechanism uses FIPS-validated cryptographic algorithms defined in CNSA 2.0 to protect the confidentiality and integrity of transmitted information.

If the application's cryptography mechanism does not use FIPS-validated cryptographic algorithms defined in CNSA 2.0 to protect the confidentiality and integrity of transmitted information, this is a finding.