What evidence do auditors commonly ask for on AU-2 Event Logging?

Audit and accountability policy; Procedures addressing auditable events; System security plan; Privacy plan; System design documentation; System configuration settings and associated documentation.

What is the most common gap auditors find on AU-2?

The subset of event types selected for logging in AU-2 c omits privileged actions and authentication events

NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 · AU - Audit and Accountability

`AU-2` Event Logging

a. Identify the types of events that the system is capable of logging in support of the audit function: organization-defined event types that the system is capable of logging; b. Coordinate the event logging function with other organizational entities requiring audit-related information to guide and inform the selection criteria for events to be logged; c. Specify the following event types for logging within the system: organization-defined event types (subset of the event types defined in AU-02a.) along with the frequency of (or situation requiring) logging for each identified event type; d. Provide a rationale for why the event types selected for logging are deemed to be adequate to support after-the-fact investigations of incidents; and e. Review and update the event types selected for logging organization-defined frequency.

Source: NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5, AU-2. The statement above is our statement of the clause, read from the published text and cited so you can check it against the official text, not the instrument verbatim. Open NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 in the compliance library.

Base controls and their enhancements. Which apply follows the baseline you are assessed against (for example FedRAMP Moderate or High, or the low, moderate and high baselines of SP 800-53B). Text in square brackets is a parameter your organisation sets.

artefacts

held by a system

at each review

hard

to go live

Policy repository / GRC workspace

where the evidence lives

teal = a system already holds it · olive = produced at each review. To go live: easy when half or more of the artefacts are already held by a system, moderate from a quarter to a half, hard below a quarter.

These are the artefacts auditors commonly ask for on this requirement, our guidance rather than text from the standard. Your assessor decides what is sufficient in your context, and asks for samples across the period when a report covers one.

system holds itEvidence a system already holds

Procedures addressing auditable events · Policy repository / GRC workspace
System auditable events · Policy repository / GRC workspace

periodic reviewEvidence produced at each review

System audit records · Policy repository / GRC workspace
Test of Mechanisms implementing system auditing · Policy repository / GRC workspace

governing documentDocuments that govern the control

Audit and accountability policy · Policy repository / GRC workspace
System security plan · Policy repository / GRC workspace
Privacy plan · Policy repository / GRC workspace
System design documentation · Policy repository / GRC workspace
System configuration settings and associated documentation · Policy repository / GRC workspace

First move

Mostly documents and reviews. Pull the 2 system-held artefacts from your Policy repository / GRC workspace on a schedule; put the documents under version control with an owner and review date, and log each review as a dated record with a named reviewer.

Common gaps auditors find

The subset of event types selected for logging in AU-2 c omits privileged actions and authentication events
No documented rationale per AU-2 d explains why the selected event types support after-the-fact incident investigations

Do this for your whole sheet

Paste the rows you run your controls from and get this mapping for every control at once, with the periodic-review ones flagged and a first move per row. No account for the first run.

Build my evidence sheet

AU-1 Policy and Procedures · AU-3 Content of Audit Records