# NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 IR-3 — Incident Response Testing - Source: https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ir-3-incident-response-testing - 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) › IR — Incident Response - Last updated: 2026-06-05 - Publisher: iCompaas, Inc. (https://www.icompaas.com) **NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5**·Control `IR-3`·high·Component: **Incident Response** ## What this control requires > Test incident response capability at a defined frequency using methods like checklists, tabletop exercises, or simulations to evaluate effectiveness and identify weaknesses. This control supports the Incident Response Management System capability within the Incident Response family. > > — NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5, Control IR-3 ### In plain English Test incident response capability at a defined frequency using methods like checklists, tabletop exercises, or simulations to evaluate effectiveness and identify weaknesses. In practice, this means you can prove you review 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 **Incident Response**, the assessor will trace your implementation back to the catalogue reference (Control IR-3) and look for objective evidence on the latest two assessment cycles. ## How to implement #### Incident Response **Runbook.** Maintain a runbook keyed by incident type with named roles (IC, comms, scribe), an out-of-band comms channel, and a 72-hour timeline for external notification. **Tabletop.** Run a quarterly tabletop exercise (ransomware, insider, supply-chain) and feed gaps back into the runbook. #### Code Review Testing **Pipeline.** Require at least one human reviewer plus passing CI (lint, type, unit, security scan) before merge — protected branches enforce this. ### Operational checklist - **Review.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Response.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **System.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Control.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Testing,.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Scope:** management, system, exercises, review, capability, incident response capability, frequency, code. ## Evidence to collect - **Ticketing Workflow.** `ticketing_workflow` evidence Workflow metrics (ServiceNow, Jira) show approvals and remediation. Focus: Incident Response Testing. ## Common pitfalls - Runbooks that name a role but no person, or list a paging channel that no longer exists. ## 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. - [**CIS Controls v8 17.7** — Conduct Routine Incident Response Exercises](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/cis-controls-v8/17-7-conduct-routine-incident-response-exercises) - [**NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 3 3.6.2** — Incident Monitoring, Reporting, and Response Assistance](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-171-rev-3/3-6-2-incident-monitoring-reporting-and-response-assistance) - [**SOC 2 (2017 TSC) CC7.4** — Incident Response](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/soc-2-trust-services-criteria/cc7-4-incident-response) ## Related controls in NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 - [**Control IR-3(1)** — Automated Testing](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ir-3-1-automated-testing) - [**Control IR-4(11)** — Integrated Incident Response Team](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ir-4-11-integrated-incident-response-team) - [**Control IR-7(2)** — Coordination With External Providers](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ir-7-2-coordination-with-external-providers) - [**Control IR-6** — Incident Reporting](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ir-6-incident-reporting) - [**Control IR-4(12)** — Malicious Code And Forensic Analysis](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/ir-4-12-malicious-code-and-forensic-analysis) - [**Control CP-4(1)** — Coordinate With Related Plans](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/nist-sp-800-53-rev-5/cp-4-1-coordinate-with-related-plans) ## 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 IR-3` Topics: incident responsechange managementcode review testing ## 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.