# NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 IA-3 — Device Identification And Authentication - Source: https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-3-device-identification-and-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-3`·high·Component: **Identification and Authentication** ## What this control requires > Control mandates uniquely identifying and authenticating organization-defined devices or device types before establishing local, remote, or network connections. Using shared information (e.g., MAC, TCP/IP addresses) or solutions like IEEE 802.1x, EAP-TLS, RADIUS, or Kerberos, organizations ensure secure device authentication, with strength based on system security categories and mission needs. This control supports the Network Authentication Solution capability within the Identification and Authentication family. > > — NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5, Control IA-3 ### In plain English Control mandates uniquely identifying and authenticating organization-defined devices or device types before establishing local, remote, or network connections. In practice, this means you can prove you information 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-3) and look for objective evidence on the latest two assessment cycles. ## How to implement #### Endpoint Protection **MDM.** Make MDM enrollment a hard gate for device access (Intune compliance + Conditional Access, or Jamf + Okta device trust). Unmanaged devices simply don't get a session token. **EDR.** Deploy CrowdStrike / SentinelOne / Defender for Endpoint to every server and laptop; alert on any host that stops sending telemetry for >24h. ### Operational checklist - **Information.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Security.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Network.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Device.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Remote.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Scope:** management, information, mission, authentication, organization, system, solutions, e. ## Evidence to collect - **User Device Scan.** MDM compliance state per user device (Intune / Jamf / Workspace ONE). Endpoint compliance telemetry (Intune, Jamf) proves managed coverage. Focus: Device Identification And Authentication. ## Common pitfalls - Pilot MDM rollouts that quietly exclude executives or engineers; carving out the highest-risk users is the most common audit failure. ## 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 3.5.2** — Device Identification and Authentication](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-171-rev-3/3-5-2-device-identification-and-authentication) ## Related controls in NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 - [**Control IA-2(13)** — Out-Of-Band Authentication](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-2-13-out-of-band-authentication) - [**Control IA-5(11)** — Hardware Token-Based Authentication](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-5-11-hardware-token-based-authentication) - [**Control IA-6** — Authentication Feedback](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-6-authentication-feedback) - [**Control IA-3(2)** — Cryptographic Bidirectional Network Authentication](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-3-2-cryptographic-bidirectional-network-authentication) - [**Control IA-3(1)** — Cryptographic Bidirectional Authentication](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-3-1-cryptographic-bidirectional-authentication) - [**Control IA-12(6)** — Accept Externally-Proofed Identities](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ia-12-6-accept-externally-proofed-identities) ## 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-3` Topics: endpoint securityendpoint protectionencryption in transitcertificate managementidentity 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.