# NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 IA-10 — Adaptive Authentication - Source: https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-10-adaptive-authentication - 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) › IA — Identification and Authentication - Last updated: 2026-06-05 - Publisher: iCompaas, Inc. (https://www.icompaas.com) **NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5**·Control `IA-10`·high·Component: **Identification and Authentication** ## What this control requires > Supplemental authentication techniques must be implemented based on suspicious behavior or specific conditions to enhance security without replacing multi-factor authentication. This control supports the Authentication Mechanisms capability within the Identification and Authentication family. > > — NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5, Control IA-10 ### In plain English Supplemental authentication techniques must be implemented based on suspicious behavior or specific conditions to enhance security without replacing multi-factor authentication. In practice, this means you can prove you access 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 **Identification and Authentication**, the assessor will trace your implementation back to the catalogue reference (Control IA-10) and look for objective evidence on the latest two assessment cycles. ## How to implement 1. Write a short policy stating intent, scope and named owner. 2. Encode it as a platform guardrail — SCP, Azure Policy initiative, Organisation Policy, or repository policy. 3. Wire a monitoring signal that catches drift (CSPM rule, SIEM rule, scheduled query, Workspace alert) and ticket it. 4. Review on a documented cadence and capture the review in the risk register or compliance tracker. ### Operational checklist - **Access.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Security.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Review.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Authentication.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Suspicious.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Scope:** management, conditions, authentication, identity, review, capability, techniques, identification. ## Evidence to collect - **Identity Scan.** IAM / IdP exports — Entra ID, Okta, IAM Identity Center, Workspace directory — showing accounts, roles, MFA state and last sign-in. Identity analytics (Okta, SailPoint, Access Analyzer) demonstrates least-privilege. Focus: Adaptive Authentication. ## 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 3.5.3** — Multi-Factor Authentication](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-171-rev-3/3-5-3-multi-factor-authentication) - [**CIS Controls v8 5.2** — Use Unique Passwords](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/5-2-use-unique-passwords) - [**ISO/IEC 27001:2022 A.5.2** — Information security roles and responsibilities](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/iso-27001-2022/a-5-2-information-security-roles-and-responsibilities) - [**BSI C5:2020 IDM-09** — Authentication mechanisms](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/bsi-c5-2020/idm-09-authentication-mechanisms) - [**ISO/IEC 27701:2025 A.3.8** — Identity management](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/iso-27701-2025/a-3-8-identity-management) ## Related controls in NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 - [**Control IA-2(1)** — Multi-Factor Authentication To Privileged Accounts](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-2-1-multi-factor-authentication-to-privileged-accounts) - [**Control IA-4(1)** — Prohibit Account Identifiers As Public Identifiers](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-4-1-prohibit-account-identifiers-as-public-identifiers) - [**Control IA-2(3)** — Local Access To Privileged Accounts](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-2-3-local-access-to-privileged-accounts) - [**Control IA-4(7)** — In-Person Registration](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-4-7-in-person-registration) - [**Control IA-2(2)** — Multi-Factor Authentication To Non-Privileged Accounts](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-2-2-multi-factor-authentication-to-non-privileged-accounts) - [**Control IA-4(3)** — Multiple Forms Of Certification](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-4-3-multiple-forms-of-certification) ## 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 IA-10` Topics: identity accessidentity managementaccess reviewprivileged accessmulti factor auth ## 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.