NIST 800-171 3.13.11 (SC.L2-3.13.11): FIPS Cryptography

Employ FIPS-validated cryptography when used to protect the confidentiality of CUI.

NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2, requirement 3.13.11

CMMC Level 2 practice SC.L2-3.13.11Published 2026-11-11

What 3.13.11 means in practice

When cryptography protects CUI, the module doing the work must be FIPS validated, meaning it has a certificate from NIST's Cryptographic Module Validation Program. Strong algorithms alone are not enough: confirm that the validated module is the one actually running, which often means turning on FIPS mode.

SPRS points and the CMMC POA&M

CMMC Level 2 practice: SC.L2-3.13.11
SPRS points: 5 points, or 3 with partial credit. Not met subtracts 5 from the score of 110; partially met subtracts 3.
CMMC POA&M: Only when CUI is encrypted but not with FIPS-validated cryptography: scored Partial, it is worth 3 points, and 32 CFR 170.21(a)(2)(ii) makes that case the one exception to the 1-point rule. Without encryption it is worth 5 points and cannot go on a POA&M.
Scoring note: Partial: CUI is encrypted, but not with a FIPS-validated module. It loses 3 points instead of 5. Isolated non-validated use covered by a plan of action counts as Met.

Sources: NIST SP 800-171 DoD Assessment Methodology, version 1.2.1 (June 24, 2020), Annex A; 32 CFR 170.21, Plan of Action and Milestones requirements.

What an assessor checks for 3.13.11

NIST SP 800-171A gives one determination statement for 3.13.11.

Determine if FIPS-validated cryptography is employed to protect the confidentiality of CUI.

NIST SP 800-171A (June 2018), assessment objectives for 3.13.11

Evidence that shows 3.13.11 is met

A list of the places where cryptography protects CUI and the module used at each.
The CMVP certificate numbers for those modules.
Configuration showing FIPS mode turned on where a product needs it.

How PolicyCortex gathers the evidence

PolicyCortex reads this evidence with the collectors below, read only, and grades 3.13.11 from it. Each line says what the product checks.

Azure Policy: Assignments. Checks that an Azure Policy assignment enforces FIPS-validated cryptography.

Related pages

Calculator: SPRS score calculator: mark 3.13.11 and the other 109 requirements and see the score.
Sample package: Sample package: an SSP, a POA&M and an evidence chain the product generated from demonstration data.
Family: All 16 System and Communications Protection requirements (3.13).
Previous: 3.13.10: Key Management
Next: 3.13.12: Collaborative Devices
All requirements: All 110 NIST SP 800-171 requirements, by family.

Related records

Guides and articles describe the work. The evidence that work produces is described in three proof pages, the architecture page, and the two pages on authorization.

proof.state: Proof of State. What the environment was, as of a date someone else picks: point-in-time records, content hashed and chained.
proof.change: Proof of Change. Who or what altered the environment, under what authority, with before and after state hashes.
proof.agency: Proof of Agency. What a machine was permitted to do before it acted, what it did, and what would have stopped it.
architecture: Architecture. How the chain is built and where the evidence is stored in each delivery mode.
authorization: Continuous ATO. How an authorizing official's decision is recorded with its package, and how the authorized system is checked against it every hour.
baseline: NIST SP 800-53. The Low, Moderate and High baselines as evidence, with the SSP, SAR and POA&M generated from one record.