EvidenceSheet
PCI DSS v4.0.1 · Req 6: Secure Systems and Software

6.1.1 Requirement 6 policies and procedures maintained and communicated

Every security policy and operational procedure that Requirement 6 calls for must meet four conditions: it is written down; it is kept current; it is actually applied in practice; and every affected party is aware of it. This covers the full set of documents behind secure development, vulnerability handling, protection of public-facing web applications and change control. It applies to all entities. Customized approach objective: the expectations, controls and oversight for Requirement 6 activities are set out and followed by the relevant staff, with every supporting activity performed in a repeatable, consistent way that matches what management intends.

Source: PCI DSS v4.0.1, 6.1.1. 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 PCI DSS v4.0.1 in the compliance library.

Version 4.0.1 is the active version; 4.0 has been retired. Appendix A1 applies only to multi-tenant service providers, A2 only to card-present POS POI terminals that still use SSL or early TLS, and A3 only when a payment brand or acquirer requires it. Which requirements apply to you follows your validation type.

5
artefacts
1
held by a system
2
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

  • Document review log showing updates after process or technology changes · SIEM / log platform

periodic reviewEvidence produced at each review

  • Distribution or acknowledgement records showing developers and operations staff received the documents · HR system / LMS
  • Interview notes confirming staff follow the documented procedures · Policy repository / GRC workspace

governing documentDocuments that govern the control

  • Secure development, vulnerability management and change management policy set with version history and approval dates · Policy repository / GRC workspace
  • Operational procedures for patching, code review and change control mapped to each Requirement 6 sub-requirement · Policy repository / GRC workspace

First move

Mostly documents and reviews. Pull the 1 system-held artefact from your SIEM / log platform 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

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

5.4.1 Mechanisms detect and protect against phishing · 6.1.2 Requirement 6 roles and responsibilities assigned