What this control covers
Establish and maintain a data recovery process. In the process, address the scope of data recovery activities, recovery prioritization, and the security of backup data. Review and update documentation annually, or when significant enterprise changes occur that could impact this Safeguard.
Why it matters
Risk is the language an executive team understands; this control connects technical reality to board-level decisions and budget allocation.
How to implement
AWS
Codify the policy intent as SCPs, AWS Config conformance packs, and Security Hub standards so the cloud enforces what the document says.
Azure
Codify in Azure Policy initiatives (built-in regulatory compliance for CIS, ISO 27001, SOC 2, HIPAA) and assign at management-group level.
GCP
Use Backup and DR Service for VM/DB and managed snapshot policies for disks; replicate critical GCS to a different region + project under separate IAM.
Google Workspace
Google Vault retention rules cover Gmail/Drive/Chat; combine with periodic third-party backups (e.g., Spanning, Backupify) for full restore-by-user.
GitHub
Dependabot security updates + version updates, plus CodeQL for SAST and a renovate bot for major-version drift management.
On-premises
Maintain a policy library with a documented review cadence (annual minimum); store in your GRC tool with attestation tracking. Map each policy to controls so an audit pull cites the exact policy clause.
Evidence to collect
policy_document— A signed, version-controlled policy stating leadership intent and the named owner.
Signed policy or standard documents the safeguard. Focus: Establish and Maintain a Data Recovery Process.
Quick checklist
- Establish And Maintain — Data / Data Recovery Process
- Address — Data / Data Recovery Process
Related articles on this site
- NIST 800-171 3.4.1 Establish and maintain baseline configurations and inventories of organizational systems (including hardware, software, firmware, and documentation) throughout the respective system development life cycles.
- NIST 800-171 3.6.1 Establish an operational incident-handling capability for organizational systems that includes preparation, detection, analysis, containment, recovery, and user response activities.
- CMMC 2.0 CM.2.061 Establish and maintain baseline configurations and inventories of organizational systems (including hardware, software, firmware, and documentation) throughout the respective system development life cycles.
- CMMC 2.0 IR.2.092 Establish an operational incident-handling capability for organizational systems that includes preparation, detection, analysis, containment, recovery, and user response activities.