# NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 AU-12 — Audit Record Generation - Source: https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/au-12-audit-record-generation - Section: [Compliance](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance) › [NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 Controls](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5) › AU — Audit and Accountability - Last updated: 2026-06-05 - Publisher: iCompaas, Inc. (https://www.icompaas.com) **NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5**·Control `AU-12`·high·Component: **Audit and Accountability** ## What this control requires > Generates audit records for defined event types on specified components, allowing authorized personnel to select events and include AU-3 content. This control supports the Audit Generation System capability within the Audit and Accountability family. > > — NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5, Control AU-12 ### In plain English Generates audit records for defined event types on specified components, allowing authorized personnel to select events and include AU-3 content. In practice, this means you can prove you policy management-level controls on a defined cadence. ## Why it matters SP 800-53 is the catalogue every U.S. federal authorisation (FedRAMP, FISMA, CMMC) and most regulated industries point at. A missing control surfaces as a Plan of Action & Milestones (POA&M) item that an Authorizing Official must approve before the Authority To Operate is granted or renewed. 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 3PAO (FedRAMP) or Independent Assessor (NIST RMF) tests against NIST SP 800-53A assessment procedures. For each control they expect a documented implementation that addresses every assessment objective (Examine, Interview, Test) and an implementation summary in the System Security Plan. Within **Audit and Accountability**, the assessor will trace your implementation back to the catalogue reference (Control AU-12) and look for objective evidence on the latest two assessment cycles. ## How to implement #### Logging Monitoring **AWS.** Org-trail CloudTrail to a central log archive account, GuardDuty in every region, and Security Hub for cross-source correlation. **Azure.** Pipe every diagnostic setting into a central Log Analytics workspace; onboard Microsoft Sentinel for SIEM/SOAR. **GCP.** Aggregate audit logs in a dedicated logging project with sink to BigQuery; enable Security Command Center Premium and route findings to Chronicle SIEM. #### 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 - **Policy.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Audit.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Event.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Content.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Audit Record.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Scope:** management, system, personnel, records, audit records, generation, components, events. ## Evidence to collect - **Policy Document.** A signed and version-controlled policy / standard / procedure document. Signed policy or standard documents the safeguard. Focus: Audit Record Generation. ## Common pitfalls - Per-account logging that nobody stitches together at the org level — incidents that cross accounts go undetected for days. - 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. - [**NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 3 3.3.3** — Audit Record Generation](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-171-rev-3/3-3-3-audit-record-generation) ## Related controls in NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 - [**Control AU-12(1)** — System-Wide And Time-Correlated Audit Trail](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/au-12-1-system-wide-and-time-correlated-audit-trail) - [**Control AU-6(4)** — Central Review And Analysis](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/au-6-4-central-review-and-analysis) - [**Control AU-14** — Session Audit](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/au-14-session-audit) - [**Control AU-12(2)** — Standardized Formats](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/au-12-2-standardized-formats) - [**Control AU-11** — Audit Record Retention](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/au-11-audit-record-retention) - [**Control AU-5(2)** — Real-Time Alerts](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/au-5-2-real-time-alerts) ## References - [NIST Computer Security Resource Center — NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5](https://csrc.nist.gov/Projects/risk-management/sp800-53-controls) - Catalogue identifier: `Control AU-12` Topics: governance risklogging monitoringpolicy management ## Related compliance guidance - [NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5: a practical implementation guide for cloud teams](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5): Start with the full NIST SP 800-53 implementation guide — scope, roadmap, evidence and how the assessment runs. - [NIST SP 800-171 and CMMC: a practical guide to protecting CUI in the cloud](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-171-rev-3): If your obligation is protecting CUI in your own systems for a federal or defence contract, this derived subset — not the full catalogue — is the requirement. - [SOC 2 compliance: a practical implementation guide for cloud-native SaaS teams](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/soc-2-trust-services-criteria): Most commercial SaaS already hold a SOC 2 Type 2, and FedRAMP 20x Class A is designed for providers that have one.