NIST SP 800-171
Definition
NIST SP 800-171 is the National Institute of Standards and Technology publication that defines 110 security requirements for protecting Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) in non-federal systems and organizations. Any company that handles CUI under a DoD contract must implement all 110 requirements and submit a self-assessment score to the Supplier Performance Risk System (SPRS).
NIST 800-171 is organized into 14 requirement families: Access Control, Awareness and Training, Audit and Accountability, Configuration Management, Identification and Authentication, Incident Response, Maintenance, Media Protection, Personnel Security, Physical Protection, Risk Assessment, Security Assessment, System and Communications Protection, and System and Information Integrity.
Scoring
Each of the 110 practices carries a point value. A perfect score is 110. Unimplemented requirements reduce the score. Contractors submit their score to SPRS -- a low score does not disqualify a firm but must be accompanied by a Plan of Action and Milestones (POA&M) with remediation timelines.
800-171 vs. 800-53
NIST 800-53 covers federal information systems operated by the government. NIST 800-171 covers contractor-operated systems handling CUI. If you are a vendor, 800-171 is your framework. If you are building a system that will operate inside a federal agency's boundary, 800-53 applies.
Related terms
FedRAMP
FedRAMP is the U.S. government's standardized security authorization program for cloud services used by federal agencies, reusable across agencies once granted.
ATO (Authority to Operate)
An Authority to Operate (ATO) is the formal approval granted by a federal Authorizing Official that allows a software system to operate within a government environment after completing the NIST Risk Management Framework assessment process. ATOs are required before any federal system goes live and must be continuously maintained -- typically reviewed annually and triggered by significant system changes.
SOC 2
SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2) is an auditing standard developed by the AICPA that evaluates a software company's controls over security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. A SOC 2 Type II report -- covering 6-12 months of operating effectiveness -- is increasingly required by enterprise buyers and is a de facto procurement requirement for B2B SaaS vendors.
CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification)
CMMC is the DoD's certification program verifying that defense contractors protect federal contract information and controlled unclassified information.
See how we implement this
Custom Application Development
Purpose-built software designed around your exact requirements.
Legacy System Modernization
Migrate, refactor, or replace aging systems without disrupting operations.
Security & Compliance
How we secure client systems, and how compliance requirements are scoped in the design phase on regulated builds.
AI Workflow Automation
LLMs and intelligent agents that eliminate repetitive work across your organization.
Need help implementing this in your business?
Code and Trust translates AI concepts like nist sp 800-171 into working implementations, starting with a workflow audit that shows exactly where it creates ROI.
Schedule AI Audit →