BSI C5:2020·Criterion COS-08·high·Component: Communication & Network Security

What this control requires

Documents data transmission policies per SP-01, using safeguards to prevent interception or manipulation. References AM-06 classification to ensure appropriate protection, safeguarding cloud customer data confidentiality during network transit.
— BSI C5:2020, Criterion COS-08

In plain English

Documents data transmission policies per SP-01, using safeguards to prevent interception or manipulation. In practice, this means you can prove you risk security policy-level controls on a defined cadence.

Why it matters

BSI C5 is the default cloud-security baseline German public-sector buyers and many DAX-listed enterprises expect; gaps here directly block procurement in the DACH region and frequently appear as must-have items in EU public-tender documents.

This control is rated high. Auditors expect a named owner, a remediation SLA, and a tooling artefact that evidences continuous operation.

What an auditor looks for

A C5 attesting auditor (under ISAE 3000 / IDW PS 860) tests both the design and — for a Type 2 — the operating effectiveness over the attestation period. For each criterion they look for both the Basic and any in-scope Additional objectives.

Within Communication & Network Security, the assessor will trace your implementation back to the catalogue reference (Criterion COS-08) and look for objective evidence on the latest two assessment cycles.

How to implement

Cloud Posture

CSPM. Run Wiz / Prisma / Defender for Cloud / Security Command Center over every account; auto-ticket findings above your accepted-risk threshold.

Network Security

AWS. VPC Flow Logs to S3, default-deny security groups, AWS Network Firewall for north-south, and Transit Gateway for hub-and-spoke segmentation.

Azure. NSGs with deny-by-default, Azure Firewall Premium with TLS inspection, Private Endpoints for PaaS, and Microsoft Defender for Cloud's secure score for drift.

GCP. VPC Service Controls perimeters around sensitive APIs, Cloud NGFW Enterprise for L7 inspection, Private Service Connect for managed services.

Policy Management

Docs. Keep each policy in version-controlled Markdown alongside the code that implements it; ship a signed PDF snapshot at each annual review and link the SHA into the SoA.

Operational checklist

  • Risk. Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence.
  • Security. Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence.
  • Confidentiality. Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence.
  • Protection. Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence.
  • Data. Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence.
  • Scope: security policy, protection, cloud customer data, safeguards, data transmission, management.

Evidence to collect

  • Policy Document. A signed and version-controlled policy / standard / procedure document.

Signed policy or standard documents the safeguard. Focus: Policies for data transmission.

Common pitfalls

  • Treating CSPM findings as a backlog instead of a hot queue: findings older than the policy SLA accumulate until the auditor asks why.
  • Default-allow egress rules; East-West traffic with no segmentation; jump hosts on the public internet with password auth.
  • Policies that no engineer has read; the version in Confluence drifts from the version that's actually being enforced.

How it maps to other frameworks

Computed from shared tags, control component and key-operation subjects — handy when you are reconciling controls across an audit.

Related controls in BSI C5:2020

References

Topics: governance riskcloud posturenetwork securitypolicy management