id: "CM-04(01)" title: "Separate Test Environments" family: "CM" family_name: "Configuration Management" sort_id: "cm-04.01" priority: "P1" implementation_level: "organization" parent: "CM-04" enhancement: True


Statement

Analyze changes to the system in a separate test environment before implementation in an operational environment, looking for security and privacy impacts due to flaws, weaknesses, incompatibility, or intentional malice.

Guidance

A separate test environment requires an environment that is physically or logically separate and distinct from the operational environment. The separation is sufficient to ensure that activities in the test environment do not impact activities in the operational environment and that information in the operational environment is not inadvertently transmitted to the test environment. Separate environments can be achieved by physical or logical means. If physically separate test environments are not implemented, organizations determine the strength of mechanism required when implementing logical separation.

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed in a separate test environment before implementation in an operational environment;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for security impacts due to flaws;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for privacy impacts due to flaws;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for security impacts due to weaknesses;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for privacy impacts due to weaknesses;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for security impacts due to incompatibility;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for privacy impacts due to incompatibility;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for security impacts due to intentional malice;

Assessment Objective: changes to the system are analyzed for privacy impacts due to intentional malice.

Configuration management policy

procedures addressing security impact analyses for changes to the system

procedures addressing privacy impact analyses for changes to the system

configuration management plan

security impact analysis documentation

privacy impact analysis documentation

privacy impact assessment

privacy risk assessment documentation

analysis tools and associated outputs system design documentation

system architecture and configuration documentation

change control records

procedures addressing the authority to test with PII

system audit records

documentation of separate test and operational environments

system security plan

privacy plan

other relevant documents or records

Organizational personnel with responsibility for conducting security and privacy impact analyses

organizational personnel with information security and privacy responsibilities

system/network administrators

members of change control board or similar

Organizational processes for security and privacy impact analyses

mechanisms supporting and/or implementing security and privacy impact analyses of changes