id: "SA-08(15)" title: "Predicate Permission" family: "SA" family_name: "System and Services Acquisition" sort_id: "sa-08.15" priority: "P1" implementation_level: "system" parent: "SA-08" enhancement: True


Statement

Implement the security design principle of predicate permission in {{ insert: param, sa-08.15_odp }}.

Guidance

The principle of predicate permission states that system designers consider requiring multiple authorized entities to provide consent before a highly critical operation or access to highly sensitive data, information, or resources is allowed to proceed. SALTZER75 originally named predicate permission the separation of privilege. It is also equivalent to separation of duty. The division of privilege among multiple parties decreases the likelihood of abuse and provides the safeguard that no single accident, deception, or breach of trust is sufficient to enable an unrecoverable action that can lead to significantly damaging effects. The design options for such a mechanism may require simultaneous action (e.g., the firing of a nuclear weapon requires two different authorized individuals to give the correct command within a small time window) or a sequence of operations where each successive action is enabled by some prior action, but no single individual is able to enable more than one action.

Assessment Objective

{{ insert: param, sa-08.15_odp }} implement the security design principle of predicate permission.

System and services acquisition policy

procedures addressing the security design principle of predicate permission used in the specification, design, development, implementation, and modification of the system

system design documentation

security and privacy requirements and specifications for the system

system security and privacy architecture

system security plan

other relevant documents or records

Organizational personnel with the responsibility for determining system security and privacy requirements

organizational personnel with system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification responsibilities

system developers

organizational personnel with information security responsibilities

Organizational processes for applying the security design principle of predicate permission in system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification

mechanisms supporting the application of the security design principle of predicate permission in system specification, design, development, implementation, and modification