NIST 800-53 Security Controls Compliance¶
Document Version: 1.0 Last Updated: 2025-12-17 Scope: Bindy DNS Operator for Kubernetes Regulatory Framework: NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 - Security and Privacy Controls for Information Systems and Organizations
Executive Summary¶
This document maps the Bindy DNS Operator's security controls to NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 requirements. NIST 800-53 is the primary security control framework for U.S. federal information systems and is widely adopted in regulated industries including banking and finance.
Bindy implements controls from the following NIST 800-53 families: - AC - Access Control - AU - Audit and Accountability - CA - Assessment, Authorization, and Monitoring - CM - Configuration Management - IA - Identification and Authentication - IR - Incident Response - RA - Risk Assessment - SA - System and Services Acquisition - SC - System and Communications Protection - SI - System and Information Integrity
Control Family: Access Control (AC)¶
AC-2: Account Management¶
Control: Manage system accounts including creation, activation, modification, and termination.
Implementation:
- Service Accounts: Dedicated Kubernetes ServiceAccount for operator (deploy/rbac/serviceaccount.yaml)
- Namespace Isolation: Multi-tenant support with namespace-scoped resources
- Automated Provisioning: Accounts created via declarative Kubernetes manifests
- Evidence: deploy/rbac/role.yaml, deploy/rbac/rolebinding.yaml
Status: ✅ Implemented
AC-3: Access Enforcement¶
Control: Enforce approved authorizations for logical access.
Implementation: - RBAC Enforcement: Kubernetes RBAC controls all API access - Least Privilege: Service account limited to DNS-related resources only - No Cluster Admin: Operator does not require cluster-admin privileges - Evidence: deploy/rbac/role.yaml - defines minimal permissions
RBAC Permissions:
# Resources: dnszone, bind9instance, bind9cluster (dns.firestoned.io/v1beta1)
Verbs: get, list, watch, create, update, patch, delete
# Resources: pods, services, configmaps, secrets, persistentvolumeclaims
Verbs: get, list, watch, create, update, patch, delete (namespaced only)
# Resources: statefulsets (apps/v1)
Verbs: get, list, watch, create, update, patch, delete
Status: ✅ Implemented
AC-6: Least Privilege¶
Control: Employ the principle of least privilege.
Implementation: - Minimal RBAC: Only required permissions granted - No Wildcard Resources: Explicit resource types defined - Namespace Scoped: ClusterRole can be bound as Role for tighter scoping - Security Context: Containers run as non-root user (UID 1000) - Evidence: src/bind9_resources.rs:427-440 - SecurityContext configuration
Status: ✅ Implemented
AC-17: Remote Access¶
Control: Authorize, monitor, and control remote access.
Implementation: - No Direct Access: Operator has no remote access capability - API Only: All interactions via Kubernetes API (authenticated and encrypted) - mTLS Optional: Linkerd service mesh provides mTLS for pod-to-pod communication - Evidence: Architecture does not include SSH, RDP, or remote shell access
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Family: Audit and Accountability (AU)¶
AU-2: Event Logging¶
Control: Identify events requiring logging.
Implementation:
- Structured Logging: All reconciliation events logged via tracing crate
- Event Types Logged:
- Resource creation/update/deletion
- Reconciliation start/end/errors
- API call failures
- Configuration changes
- Finalizer operations
- Evidence: src/reconcilers/dnszone.rs, src/reconcilers/bind9instance.rs
Logged Events:
- INFO: Successful reconciliations, resource creation
- WARN: Retry conditions, temporary failures
- ERROR: Permanent failures, API errors
- DEBUG: Detailed reconciliation steps (when RUST_LOG=debug)
Status: ✅ Implemented
AU-3: Content of Audit Records¶
Control: Generate audit records with required content.
Implementation: - Structured Fields: - Timestamp (automatic via tracing) - Event type (log level) - Resource name and namespace - User/Actor (ServiceAccount from Kubernetes) - Outcome (success/failure) - Error details (when applicable) - Example Log Entry:
2025-12-17T10:30:15Z INFO reconcile{resource=example.com namespace=dns-system} Reconciliation succeeded
Status: ✅ Implemented
AU-9: Protection of Audit Information¶
Control: Protect audit information from unauthorized access, modification, and deletion.
Implementation: - Immutable Logs: Stdout logs captured by container runtime (read-only) - Centralized Collection: Logs forwarded to SIEM/log aggregation (user responsibility) - Kubernetes Audit Logs: API server audit logs capture all resource modifications - No Log Tampering: Container filesystem read-only except for required mounts - Evidence: Container security context, read-only root filesystem
Status: ✅ Implemented (application-level), ⚠️ Log retention is deployment-specific
AU-12: Audit Record Generation¶
Control: Generate audit records for defined events.
Implementation:
- Automatic Generation: All reconciler functions instrumented with tracing
- Coverage: 100% of reconciliation paths logged
- No Bypass: Logging cannot be disabled without code modification
- Evidence: #[instrument] macros throughout reconcilers
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Family: Configuration Management (CM)¶
CM-2: Baseline Configuration¶
Control: Develop, document, and maintain baseline configuration.
Implementation: - Infrastructure as Code: All configuration in Git-versioned manifests - CRD Schemas: Define allowed configuration via OpenAPI v3 schemas - Default Values: Sensible defaults documented in CRD API reference - Evidence: deploy/crds/, docs/src/reference/api.md
Status: ✅ Implemented
CM-3: Configuration Change Control¶
Control: Control changes to system configuration.
Implementation:
- Version Control: All code in Git with signed commits
- Change Review: Pull request approval required for main branch
- Automated Testing: Changes validated before merge
- Changelog: All changes documented in CHANGELOG.md
- Evidence: .github/workflows/, branch protection rules
Status: ✅ Implemented
CM-6: Configuration Settings¶
Control: Establish and document configuration settings.
Implementation: - Documented Settings: All CRD fields documented in API reference - Schema Validation: Settings validated on admission - Security Baselines: Documented in deploy/rbac/README.md - Evidence: docs/src/reference/api.md
Status: ✅ Implemented
CM-7: Least Functionality¶
Control: Configure systems to provide only essential capabilities.
Implementation: - Minimal Container Image: Distroless base image (no shell, no package manager) - Single Binary: Only the operator binary included - No Debug Tools: Production image has no debugging utilities - Read-Only Filesystem: Container root filesystem mounted read-only - Evidence: Dockerfile
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Family: Identification and Authentication (IA)¶
IA-2: Identification and Authentication¶
Control: Uniquely identify and authenticate users.
Implementation: - ServiceAccount Authentication: Kubernetes authenticates operator via ServiceAccount token - mTLS (Optional): Linkerd provides mutual TLS for pod identity - No Human Users: Operator runs as automated system account only - Evidence: deploy/rbac/serviceaccount.yaml
Status: ✅ Implemented
IA-3: Device Identification and Authentication¶
Control: Uniquely identify and authenticate devices.
Implementation: - Pod Identity: Kubernetes assigns unique pod identity - Certificate-Based: ServiceAccount token cryptographically verifies identity - Network Policies (Optional): Linkerd or NetworkPolicies restrict pod communication - Evidence: Kubernetes ServiceAccount token mechanism
Status: ✅ Implemented
IA-5: Authenticator Management¶
Control: Manage system authenticators.
Implementation: - Token Rotation: ServiceAccount tokens automatically rotated by Kubernetes - Secret Protection: TSIG keys stored in Kubernetes Secrets (encrypted at rest) - No Hardcoded Secrets: All credentials externalized - Evidence: src/bind9_resources.rs - Secret references, no hardcoded values
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Family: Incident Response (IR)¶
IR-4: Incident Handling¶
Control: Implement incident handling capability.
Implementation:
- Security Policy: Documented in SECURITY.md
- Vulnerability Reporting: GitHub Security Advisories enabled
- CVE Monitoring: cargo audit in CI/CD pipeline
- Response Procedures: Documented patch and mitigation process
- Evidence: .github/workflows/audit.yml
Status: ✅ Implemented
IR-6: Incident Reporting¶
Control: Report security incidents.
Implementation: - Public Disclosure: Security advisories published on GitHub - Private Reporting: Email contact in SECURITY.md - Coordinated Disclosure: 90-day disclosure timeline - Evidence: SECURITY.md
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Family: Risk Assessment (RA)¶
RA-5: Vulnerability Monitoring and Scanning¶
Control: Monitor and scan for vulnerabilities.
Implementation:
- Dependency Scanning: cargo audit checks for known CVEs
- Automated Scanning: CI/CD pipeline runs on every commit
- Container Scanning: Base images regularly updated
- Evidence: .github/workflows/audit.yml
Scanning Frequency: - Every commit (CI/CD) - Every PR (pre-merge) - Daily scheduled job (dependency updates)
Status: ✅ Implemented
RA-5(5): Privileged Access¶
Control: Implement privileged access authorization.
Implementation: - No Privileged Containers: SecurityContext prevents privilege escalation - Non-Root User: Containers run as UID 1000 - Read-Only Filesystem: Root filesystem read-only - No Host Access: No hostPath, hostNetwork, or hostPID - Evidence: src/bind9_resources.rs:427-440
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Family: System and Services Acquisition (SA)¶
SA-3: System Development Life Cycle¶
Control: Acquire, develop, and manage systems using SDLC.
Implementation: - Defined Process: Development workflow documented in CLAUDE.md - Automated Testing: Unit, integration, and end-to-end tests - Code Review: Mandatory PR review before merge - Evidence: .github/workflows/, CLAUDE.md
SDLC Phases: 1. Requirements: GitHub Issues, ADRs 2. Design: Architecture documentation, code comments 3. Development: Rust development with unit tests 4. Testing: CI/CD automated tests 5. Deployment: Container images, Kubernetes manifests 6. Maintenance: Changelog, version tags
Status: ✅ Implemented
SA-10: Developer Configuration Management¶
Control: Require developers to perform configuration management.
Implementation: - Version Control: All code in Git - Branch Protection: Main branch requires PR approval - Automated Checks: Linting, testing, security scans - Evidence: GitHub branch protection rules
Status: ✅ Implemented
SA-11: Developer Testing and Evaluation¶
Control: Require developers to create and implement test plans.
Implementation: - Unit Tests: Required for all public functions (CLAUDE.md) - Integration Tests: End-to-end tests in Kind clusters - Test Coverage: Tracked and reported - Evidence: tests/, Makefile integration test targets
Status: ✅ Implemented
SA-15: Development Process, Standards, and Tools¶
Control: Require adherence to development standards.
Implementation:
- Coding Standards: Rust style guide, rustfmt, clippy
- Security Standards: No unwrap(), proper error handling
- Documentation Standards: Rustdoc comments required
- Evidence: CLAUDE.md - Rust Style Guidelines
Enforced Standards:
- Code formatting: cargo fmt
- Linting: cargo clippy -- -D warnings
- Documentation: Rustdoc on all public items
- Security: cargo audit for CVEs
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Family: System and Communications Protection (SC)¶
SC-7: Boundary Protection¶
Control: Monitor and control communications at external system boundaries.
Implementation: - Namespace Boundaries: Resources isolated by namespace - Network Policies (Optional): User can apply NetworkPolicies - Service Mesh (Optional): Linkerd provides mTLS and policy enforcement - No External Exposure: Operator listens only on Kubernetes API - Evidence: Architecture design, no ingress/loadbalancer services
Status: ✅ Implemented
SC-8: Transmission Confidentiality and Integrity¶
Control: Protect confidentiality and integrity of transmitted information.
Implementation: - TLS for API: Kubernetes API always uses TLS - mTLS (Optional): Linkerd provides automatic mTLS between pods - No Plaintext Secrets: Secrets encrypted in transit (TLS) and at rest (etcd) - Evidence: Kubernetes architecture, Linkerd service mesh support
Status: ✅ Implemented
SC-12: Cryptographic Key Establishment and Management¶
Control: Establish and manage cryptographic keys.
Implementation: - Automated Key Management: Kubernetes manages ServiceAccount keys - TSIG Key Storage: DNS TSIG keys stored in Kubernetes Secrets - No Manual Keys: All cryptographic material generated and rotated automatically - Evidence: src/bind9_resources.rs - Secret references
Status: ✅ Implemented
SC-13: Cryptographic Protection¶
Control: Implement FIPS-validated cryptography.
Implementation: - TLS Libraries: Uses system TLS (OpenSSL or BoringSSL) - FIPS Mode (Optional): Can be deployed with FIPS-validated crypto modules - Evidence: See fips.md for FIPS 140-2/140-3 compliance details
Status: ⚠️ FIPS mode deployment-specific (see fips.md)
SC-28: Protection of Information at Rest¶
Control: Protect confidentiality and integrity of information at rest.
Implementation: - Encrypted etcd: Kubernetes Secrets encrypted at rest in etcd - No Local Storage: All state in Kubernetes API (etcd) - ConfigMap Integrity: Immutable ConfigMaps for zone files - Evidence: Kubernetes encryption-at-rest configuration (deployment-specific)
Status: ⚠️ Requires etcd encryption enabled in cluster
Control Family: System and Information Integrity (SI)¶
SI-2: Flaw Remediation¶
Control: Identify, report, and correct system flaws.
Implementation:
- Vulnerability Scanning: cargo audit for known CVEs
- Patch Process: Documented in SECURITY.md
- Automated Updates: Dependabot PRs for dependency updates
- Evidence: .github/dependabot.yml
Status: ✅ Implemented
SI-3: Malicious Code Protection¶
Control: Implement malicious code protection.
Implementation:
- Dependency Scanning: cargo audit checks all dependencies
- Code Review: All code reviewed before merge
- Minimal Dependencies: Only necessary crates included
- Supply Chain Security: SBOM generation, dependency provenance
- Evidence: Cargo.lock, SBOM generation in CI/CD
Status: ✅ Implemented
SI-4: System Monitoring¶
Control: Monitor the system to detect attacks and indicators of compromise.
Implementation:
- Health Checks: /health and /ready endpoints
- Metrics Export: Prometheus metrics for monitoring
- Status Reporting: CRD status conditions reflect system health
- Evidence: src/main.rs - health endpoints
Monitored Metrics: - Reconciliation rate and duration - Error rate and types - Resource counts (zones, instances) - Pod health (liveness/readiness)
Status: ✅ Implemented
SI-7: Software, Firmware, and Information Integrity¶
Control: Detect unauthorized changes to software and information.
Implementation: - Signed Commits: Git commits cryptographically signed - Image Signing: Container images signed with cosign/sigstore - Immutable Tags: Release tags never modified - Hash Verification: Container images verified by digest - Evidence: GitHub commit signing, container registry signatures
Status: ✅ Implemented (commits), ⚠️ Image signing in progress
SI-10: Information Input Validation¶
Control: Check validity of inputs.
Implementation: - Schema Validation: CRD OpenAPI v3 schemas validate all input - Type Safety: Rust compiler enforces type correctness - DNS Validation: RFC 1035 compliance for DNS names - IP Validation: RFC 791/4291 compliance for IP addresses - Evidence: src/crd.rs - JSON Schema definitions
Validation Checks: - DNS name format (labels, length, characters) - IP address format (IPv4, IPv6, CIDR) - Port numbers (1-65535) - Required vs. optional fields - Enum value constraints
Status: ✅ Implemented
Control Implementation Summary¶
| Control Family | Controls Implemented | Controls Planned | Controls N/A |
|---|---|---|---|
| AC - Access Control | 4/4 | 0 | 0 |
| AU - Audit and Accountability | 4/4 | 0 | 0 |
| CM - Configuration Management | 4/4 | 0 | 0 |
| IA - Identification and Authentication | 3/3 | 0 | 0 |
| IR - Incident Response | 2/2 | 0 | 0 |
| RA - Risk Assessment | 2/2 | 0 | 0 |
| SA - System Acquisition | 4/4 | 0 | 0 |
| SC - System Protection | 5/7 | 2 | 0 |
| SI - System Integrity | 5/5 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTAL | 33/35 | 2 | 0 |
Implementation Rate: 94%
Planned Controls: - SC-13: FIPS-validated cryptography (deployment guide) - SI-7: Container image signing automation
Continuous Monitoring¶
Automated Compliance Checks¶
- Daily: Dependency vulnerability scans
- Per Commit: Code quality, security linting
- Per Release: Full compliance verification
Manual Reviews¶
- Quarterly: RBAC permission reviews
- Annually: Full control testing
- Ad-Hoc: Post-incident reviews
Compliance Artifacts¶
Evidence for auditors: 1. Code Repository: https://github.com/firestoned/bindy 2. RBAC Definitions: deploy/rbac/ 3. CI/CD Pipelines: .github/workflows/ 4. Security Policy: SECURITY.md 5. Change Log: CHANGELOG.md 6. API Documentation: docs/src/reference/api.md
References¶
- NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 - Security and Privacy Controls
- NIST SP 800-53B - Control Baselines
- NIST SP 800-171 - Protecting CUI
- FedRAMP Security Controls
Document Control¶
| Version | Date | Author | Changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | 2025-12-17 | Erick Bourgeois | Initial NIST 800-53 compliance mapping |