information sharing among agencies and between agencies and CSPs.
(f) Within 60 days of the date of this order, the Administrator of General Services, in
consultation with the Director of OMB and the heads of other agencies as the
Administrator of General Services deems appropriate, shall begin modernizing FedRAMP
by:
(i) establishing a training program to ensure agencies are effectively trained and
equipped to manage FedRAMP requests, and providing access to training materials,
including videos-on-demand;
(ii) improving communication with CSPs through automation and standardization
of messages at each stage of authorization. These communications may include status
updates, requirements to complete a vendor’s current stage, next steps, and points of
contact for questions;
(iii) incorporating automation throughout the lifecycle of FedRAMP, including
assessment, authorization, continuous monitoring, and compliance;
(iv) digitizing and streamlining documentation that vendors are required to
complete, including through online accessibility and pre-populated forms; and
(v) identifying relevant compliance frameworks, mapping those frameworks onto
requirements in the FedRAMP authorization process, and allowing those frameworks to
be used as a substitute for the relevant portion of the authorization process, as
appropriate.
Sec. 4. Enhancing Software Supply Chain Security.
(a) The security of software used by the Federal Government is vital to the Federal
Government’s ability to perform its critical functions. The development of commercial
software often lacks transparency, sufficient focus on the ability of the software to resist
attack, and adequate controls to prevent tampering by malicious actors. There is a
pressing need to implement more rigorous and predictable mechanisms for ensuring that
products function securely, and as intended. The security and integrity of “critical
software” — software that performs functions critical to trust (such as affording or
requiring elevated system privileges or direct access to networking and computing
resources) — is a particular concern. Accordingly, the Federal Government must take
action to rapidly improve the security and integrity of the software supply chain, with a
priority on addressing critical software.
(b) Within 30 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Commerce acting through
the Director of NIST shall solicit input from the Federal Government, private sector,
academia, and other appropriate actors to identify existing or develop new standards,
tools, and best practices for complying with the standards, procedures, or criteria in
subsection (e) of this section. The guidelines shall include criteria that can be used to
evaluate software security, include criteria to evaluate the security practices of the
developers and suppliers themselves, and identify innovative tools or methods to
demonstrate conformance with secure practices.
(c) Within 180 days of the date of this order, the Director of NIST shall publish
preliminary guidelines, based on the consultations described in subsection (b) of this
section and drawing on existing documents as practicable, for enhancing software supply
chain security and meeting the requirements of this section.
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