EMASS

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The Enterprise Mission Assurance Support Service (eMASS) is a service-oriented computer application that supports Information Assurance (IA) program management and automates the Risk Management Framework (RMF) process.

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Overview

eMASS is a service-oriented computer application that supports Information Assurance (IA) program management and automates the Risk Management Framework (RMF). [1] The purpose of eMASS is to help the DoD to maintain IA situational awareness, manage risk, and comply with the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA 2002) and the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA 2014). eMASS is owned by the U.S. Department of Defense (i.e., the software is not proprietary). The program is sponsored by the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration (ASD (NII)) and is managed by the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Program Executive Office for Mission Assurance and NetOps (PEO-MA). [2]

As the DoD's recommended tool for information system Assessment and Authorization (A&A), eMASS automates the A&A process, manages workflow among user roles, and generates a variety of reports based on user needs (including all reports required by RMF and FISMA). The functional capabilities of eMASS have evolved in response to requirements from DoD leadership and operational user feedback.

eMASS is designed to work in concert with the RMF Knowledge Service (CAC or ECA required), and empowers the DoD IA workforce in support of the DoD 8500-series Information Assurance policy framework and implementation guidance. eMASS establishes strict process control mechanisms for obtaining authorization to connect to the DoD's Global Information Grid (GIG) networks, which helps to reduce the risk of cyber attacks and to accomplish the goals of RMF. [3]

eMASS as a Cloud Service

eMASS also provides C&A capabilities in the DoD’s cloud computing environment, the Rapid Access Computing Environment (RACE). According to DISA government officials, offering eMASS as a cloud service will help to significantly reduce the time required to certify and accredit DoD information systems. [4]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Defense Information Systems Agency</span> US Department of Defense combat support agency

The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), known as the Defense Communications Agency (DCA) until 1991, is a United States Department of Defense (DoD) combat support agency composed of military, federal civilians, and contractors. DISA provides information technology (IT) and communications support to the President, Vice President, Secretary of Defense, the military services, the combatant commands, and any individual or system contributing to the defense of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002</span> United States federal law

The Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 is a United States federal law enacted in 2002 as Title III of the E-Government Act of 2002. The act recognized the importance of information security to the economic and national security interests of the United States. The act requires each federal agency to develop, document, and implement an agency-wide program to provide information security for the information and information systems that support the operations and assets of the agency, including those provided or managed by another agency, contractor, or other source.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Global Information Grid</span> Communications project of the United States Department of Defense

The Global Information Grid (GIG) is a network of information transmission and processing maintained by the United States Department of Defense. More descriptively, it is a worldwide network of information transmission, of associated processes, and of personnel serving to collect, process, safeguard, transmit, and manage this information. It is an all-encompassing communications project of the United States Department of Defense. The GIG makes this immediately available to military personnel, to those responsible for military politics, and for support personnel. It includes all infrastructure, bought or loaned, of communications, electronics, informatics, and security. It is the most visible manifestation of network-centric warfare. It is the combination of technology and human activity that enables warfighters to access information on demand.

The Defense Information System Network (DISN) has been the United States Department of Defense's enterprise telecommunications network for providing data, video, and voice services for 40 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NetOps</span>

NetOps is defined as the operational framework consisting of three essential tasks, Situational Awareness (SA), and Command & Control (C2) that the Commander (CDR) of US Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), in coordination with DoD and Global NetOps Community, employs to operate, manage and defend the Global Information Grid (GIG) to ensure information superiority for the United States.

Software assurance (SwA) is a critical process in software development that ensures the reliability, safety, and security of software products. It involves a variety of activities, including requirements analysis, design reviews, code inspections, testing, and formal verification. One crucial component of software assurance is secure coding practices, which follow industry-accepted standards and best practices, such as those outlined by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) in their CERT Secure Coding Standards (SCS).

An information assurance vulnerability alert (IAVA) is an announcement of a computer application software or operating system vulnerability notification in the form of alerts, bulletins, and technical advisories identified by US-CERT, https://www.us-cert.gov/ US-CERT is managed by National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC), which is part of Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). CISA, which includes the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) realigned its organizational structure in 2017, integrating like functions previously performed independently by the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) and the Industrial Control Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team (ICS-CERT). These selected vulnerabilities are the mandated baseline, or minimum configuration of all hosts residing on the GIG. US-CERT analyzes each vulnerability and determines if it is necessary or beneficial to the Department of Defense to release it as an IAVA. Implementation of IAVA policy will help ensure that DoD Components take appropriate mitigating actions against vulnerabilities to avoid serious compromises to DoD computer system assets that would potentially degrade mission performance.

Information assurance (IA) is the practice of assuring information and managing risks related to the use, processing, storage, and transmission of information. Information assurance includes protection of the integrity, availability, authenticity, non-repudiation and confidentiality of user data. IA encompasses both digital protections and physical techniques. These methods apply to data in transit, both physical and electronic forms, as well as data at rest. IA is best thought of as a superset of information security, and as the business outcome of information risk management.

The DoD Information Assurance Certification and Accreditation Process (DIACAP) is a deprecated United States Department of Defense (DoD) process meant to ensure companies and organizations applied risk management to information systems (IS). DIACAP defined a DoD-wide formal and standard set of activities, general tasks and a management structure process for the certification and accreditation (C&A) of a DoD IS which maintained the information assurance (IA) posture throughout the system's life cycle.

A cross-domain solution (CDS) is an integrated information assurance system composed of specialized software, and sometimes hardware, that provides a controlled interface to manually or automatically enable and/or restrict the access or transfer of information between two or more security domains based on a predetermined security policy. CDSs are designed to enforce domain separation and typically include some form of content filtering, which is used to designate information that is unauthorized for transfer between security domains or levels of classification, such as between different military divisions, intelligence agencies, or other operations which depend on the timely sharing of potentially sensitive information.

Security controls are safeguards or countermeasures to avoid, detect, counteract, or minimize security risks to physical property, information, computer systems, or other assets. In the field of information security, such controls protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information.

The Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP) is a method for using specific standards to enable automated vulnerability management, measurement, and policy compliance evaluation of systems deployed in an organization, including e.g., FISMA compliance. The National Vulnerability Database (NVD) is the U.S. government content repository for SCAP. An example of an implementation of SCAP is OpenSCAP. SCAP is a suite of tools that have been compiled to be compatible with various protocols for things like configuration management, compliance requirements, software flaws, or vulnerabilities patching. Accumulation of these standards provides a means for data to be communicated between humans and machines efficiently. The objective of the framework is to promote a communal approach to the implementation of automated security mechanisms that are not monopolized.

Information technology risk, IT risk, IT-related risk, or cyber risk is any risk relating to information technology. While information has long been appreciated as a valuable and important asset, the rise of the knowledge economy and the Digital Revolution has led to organizations becoming increasingly dependent on information, information processing and especially IT. Various events or incidents that compromise IT in some way can therefore cause adverse impacts on the organization's business processes or mission, ranging from inconsequential to catastrophic in scale.

NIST Special Publication 800-53 is an information security standard that provides a catalog of security and privacy controls for all U.S. federal information systems except those related to national security. It is published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce. NIST develops and issues standards, guidelines, and other publications to assist federal agencies in implementing the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 (FISMA) and to help with managing cost effective programs to protect their information and information systems.

Security information and event management (SIEM) is a field within the field of computer security, where software products and services combine security information management (SIM) and security event management (SEM). SIEM is the core component of any typical Security Operations Center (SOC), which is the centralized response team addressing security issues within an organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Risk Management Framework</span>

The National Institute for Standards and Technology's (NIST) Risk Management Framework (RMF) is a United States federal government guideline, standard and process for risk management to help secure information systems developed by National Institute of Standards and Technology. The Risk Management Framework (RMF), illustrated in the diagram to the right, provides a disciplined and structured process that integrates information security, privacy and risk management activities into the system development life cycle.

Host Based Security System (HBSS) is the official name given to the United States Department of Defense (DOD) commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) suite of software applications used within the DOD to monitor, detect, and defend the DOD computer networks and systems. The Enterprise-wide Information Assurance and computer Network Defense Solutions Steering Group (ESSG) sponsored the acquisition of the HBSS System for use within the DOD Enterprise Network. HBSS is deployed on both the Non-Classified Internet Protocol Routed Network (NIPRNet) and Secret Internet Protocol Routed Network (SIPRNet) networks, with priority given to installing it on the NIPRNet. HBSS is based on McAfee, Inc's ePolicy Orchestrator (ePO) and other McAfee point product security applications such as Host Intrusion Prevention System (HIPS).

A Master of Science in Cyber Security is a type of postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree is typically studied for in cyber security. What is offered by many institutions is actually called a Master in Strategic Cyber Operations and Information Management (SCOIM) which is commonly understood to be a Master in Cybersecurity. This degree is offered by at least some universities in their Professional Studies program so that it can be accomplished while students are employed - in other words it allows for "distance learning" or online attendance. Requirements for the Professional Studies program include: 3.0 or better undergrad GPA, professional recommendations letters and an essay.

The National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) is a US government organization that builds and publicly shares solutions to cybersecurity problems faced by U.S. businesses. The center, located in Rockville, Maryland, was established in 2012 through a partnership with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the state of Maryland, and Montgomery County. The center is partnered with nearly 20 market-leading IT companies, which contribute hardware, software and expertise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FedRAMP</span> US government cybersecurity program

The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) is a United States federal government-wide compliance program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for cloud products and services.

References

  1. NIST CSRC Risk Management Framework Overview (publicly accessible), https://csrc.nist.gov/projects/risk-management/rmf-overview
  2. eMASS Overview, https://www.disa.mil/~/media/Files/DISA/Fact-Sheets/eMASS.pdf
  3. DoD Instruction 8510.01, DoD Risk Management Framework (RMF) for DoD Information Technology, 03/12/2014, https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/851001p.pdf?ver=qEE2HGN_HE4Blu7161t1TQ%3D%3D
  4. "DISA Ramps Up Cloud Computing Platform," Washington Technology, 10/5/2009, http://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2009/10/05/disa-cloud-computing-platform.aspx