Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) plays a crucial role in safeguarding information that the United States government deems sensitive but unclassified. CUI is an umbrella term encompassing various types of information that the government believes should be protected. In this article “Who Can Decontrol CUI? What is CUI basic?“, we’ll delve into the details of CUI Basic – a common type of CUI. Furthermore, we will touch on the ‘decontrol’ of CUI, which refers to the removal of the CUI designation from a particular piece of information. Continue reading to gain a deeper understanding of these vital aspects of information management, and explore additional services and valuable information at bebugold.vn.
I. What is CUI basic?
CUI Basic, or Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Basic, is a category of information that, while not classified, requires safeguarding or dissemination controls, according to U.S. federal laws, regulations, and government-wide policies. CUI Basic is the general default category for CUI and encompasses all CUI that is not specified by an information type in the CUI Registry.
The CUI program standardizes practices for handling unclassified information across the U.S. federal government. This includes information like personally identifiable information (PII), law enforcement sensitive information, export-controlled information, and other types of data that, while not classified, are still sensitive and need to be controlled.
In contrast, there’s also CUI Specified, which is a subset of CUI where the authorizing laws, regulations, or government-wide policies governing the information provide specific handling guidance. This information falls under a narrower set of controls.
II. What is CUI specified?
Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Specified is a subset of CUI where the underlying laws, regulations, or government-wide policies that make the information CUI stipulate or provide specific handling controls above and beyond those required for CUI Basic.
While CUI Basic includes all CUI that is not specified by an information type in the CUI Registry, CUI Specified pertains to data that is governed by specific regulations and requirements. These might include more stringent restrictions on who can access the information, requirements for special handling or storage, or other specific rules.
Examples of CUI Specified could include certain types of export-controlled information, nuclear information, patent information, or critical infrastructure information. The exact specifications will be provided in the specific law, regulation, or policy that designated the information as CUI.
It’s important to note that all CUI, whether Basic or Specified, must be properly safeguarded to avoid unauthorized disclosure.
III. What level of system and network configuration is required for CUI?
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides guidelines for handling Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) in NIST Special Publication 800-171. These guidelines are to be applied to all components of non-federal information systems and organizations that process, store, or transmit CUI, or that provide security protection for such components.
Here are some of the high-level requirements from the NIST SP 800-171 regarding system and network configuration:
- Access Control: Limit system access to authorized users, processes acting on behalf of authorized users, or devices (including other systems).
- Awareness and Training: Ensure that managers and users of organizational systems are made aware of the security risks associated with their activities and of the applicable policies, standards, and procedures related to the security of those systems.
- Audit and Accountability: Create, protect, and retain system audit logs and records to the extent needed to enable the monitoring, analysis, investigation, and reporting of unlawful or unauthorized system activity.
- Configuration Management: Establish and maintain baseline configurations and inventories of organizational systems (including hardware, software, firmware, and documentation) throughout the respective system development life cycles.
- Identification and Authentication: Identify system users, processes acting on behalf of users, or devices.
- Incident Response: Establish an operational incident-handling capability for organizational systems that includes adequate preparation, detection, analysis, containment, recovery, and user response activities.
- Maintenance: Perform periodic and timely maintenance on organizational systems.
- Media Protection: Protect system media, both paper and digital.
- Physical Protection: Limit physical access to systems, equipment, and the respective operating environments to authorized individuals.
- Risk Assessment: Periodically assess the risk to organizational operations, organizational assets, and individuals.
- Security Assessment: Periodically assess the security controls in organizational systems to determine if the controls are effective in their application.
- System and Communications Protection: Monitor, control, and protect communications (i.e., information transmitted or received by organizational systems) at the external boundaries and key internal boundaries of the information systems.
- System and Information Integrity: Identify, report, and correct system and information flaws in a timely manner, provide protection from malicious code, and monitor system security alerts and advisories and take appropriate actions in response.
- Personnel Security: Screen individuals prior to authorizing access to CUI and ensure that CUI access is terminated when individuals leave the organization or no longer require access.
The exact configurations and measures would be dependent on the specific systems and networks in question, as well as the nature of the CUI being processed, stored, or transmitted.
IV. Who can decontrol CUI?
The decision to decontrol, or remove the designation of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), typically rests with the controlling agency, meaning the federal agency that originally classified the information as CUI. These agencies have the necessary understanding and legal jurisdiction to determine whether the information no longer requires safeguarding and dissemination controls.
According to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), which administers the CUI program, agencies should consider any relevant laws, Federal regulations, or Government-wide policies when deciding to decontrol information.
In terms of procedure, agencies must notify recipients when they decontrol information, unless the information is older than three years at the time of decontrol, or if it has been disseminated to the public or to recipients not subject to CUI policy.
Despite the decontrol, the agency must continue to protect the information until it has notified all known authorized holders, or the CUI Registry marks the information as decontrolled. If unauthorized holders learn that CUI has been decontrolled, they are required to destroy or return the information to an authorized holder.
V. What is the purpose of the isoo CUI registry?
The Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) CUI Registry serves as the executive branch’s comprehensive database for all information that needs to be protected as Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI).
Here are some of the main purposes and functions of the ISOO CUI Registry:
- List of CUI Categories and Subcategories: The Registry lists all approved CUI categories and subcategories, associated markings, and dissemination and decontrol instructions.
- Guidance and Policy Information: The Registry provides information on policies and procedures pertaining to CUI, including how to handle, use, disseminate, decontrol, and mark CUI. It provides links to relevant laws, regulations, and government-wide policies that establish CUI categories or subcategories.
- Training and Resources: The Registry provides resources for agencies to establish their CUI training programs. This includes providing standardized training modules and materials to assist with the implementation of the CUI program.
- Safer Information Sharing: The Registry supports safer and more effective sharing of information within the federal government and with non-federal entities by creating uniform standards for protecting unclassified information.
In sum, the ISOO CUI Registry is a critical tool for standardizing the treatment of unclassified information that requires safeguarding or dissemination controls pursuant to federal law, regulations, and government-wide policies. The goal is to reduce complexity and improve the protection and handling of this information.
VI. Who is responsible for applying CUI markings and dissemination instructions?
The responsibility for applying Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) markings and dissemination instructions falls primarily on the agency, office, or person who has decided to control the information in the first place. This is often the originator of the information, though it can also be someone else who later determines the information should be designated as CUI.
CUI markings are essential for other people and organizations to understand how they should handle the information. They include elements such as the CUI banner marking, category or subcategory markings, and dissemination control markings.
Before marking a document, it’s essential that the individual understands the type of CUI they are dealing with, whether it’s CUI Basic or CUI Specified, and the correct way to mark it. The CUI Registry provides official guidance on how to apply these markings.
Once CUI is marked, recipients must then handle the information in accordance with those markings and any applicable laws, regulations, and government-wide policies. This includes both federal agencies and non-federal entities that receive CUI.
It’s also important to note that if CUI is included in part of a larger document, the entire document must be controlled as CUI.
VII. What is the goal of destroying CUI?
The goal of destroying Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) is to ensure that it cannot be accessed or reconstructed when it is no longer needed, thereby preventing unauthorized access to sensitive information.
In line with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication 800-88, destruction processes should render the data on media unreadable, indecipherable, and unable to be reconstructed.
Proper destruction of CUI is a crucial part of maintaining information security. Even though CUI is not classified information, it can still include sensitive or protected data that, if accessed inappropriately, could have adverse effects on individuals’ privacy or an organization’s operations.
It’s also important to note that the process of destruction should be done in a manner that is consistent with the law, federal regulations, and government-wide policies, as well as any relevant agency-specific policies. Each agency may have specific methods that they prefer for the destruction of CUI, whether that’s shredding, burning, pulping, pulverizing, degaussing, or a process of electronic sanitization.
As part of best practices, records should be kept of when and how CUI is destroyed to maintain a clear audit trail.
VIII. At the time of creation of cui material the authorized holder is responsible for determining
Please note that all information presented in this article has been obtained from a variety of sources, including wikipedia.org and several other newspapers. Although we have tried our best to verify all information, we cannot guarantee that everything mentioned is correct and has not been 100% verified. Therefore, we recommend caution when referencing this article or using it as a source in your own research or report.
