Your Fast Track to NIST-Compliant SaaS Security

In an era where SaaS app-first strategies dominate the IT landscape, securing data in SaaS applications while meeting regulatory requirements like NIST compliance has become mission critical.

Why NIST Compliance Matters

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides cybersecurity frameworks and controls such as the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) and the NIST SP 800-53 that help organizations strengthen their cybersecurity posture. These are especially critical for:

• Government agencies and contractors
• Healthcare, finance, and other regulated sectors
• Organizations handling Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI)

Compliance with NIST standards requires stringent safeguards for identity management, data protection, incident response, and continuous monitoring.

Key NIST Compliance Challenges for SaaS Adoption

As organizations accelerate their adoption of SaaS applications, aligning with NIST standards becomes increasingly complex. Several common challenges hinder compliance efforts, including:

• Limited Visibility into SaaS Usage (Shadow IT)
  Organizations often find it challenging to monitor even the SaaS applications they’ve sanctioned for employee use. However, gaining visibility into unsanctioned or shadow IT apps being actively used is even harder and thus resulting in ungoverned data flows, increased risk exposure, and compliance gaps.
• Data Protection Across Hybrid Environments
  Sensitive data residing in SaaS applications like Microsoft 365 and Copilot is increasingly exposed to risks such as accidental oversharing, malware infiltration, and inadequate access controls. For instance, a misconfigured SharePoint site may unintentionally expose confidential financial reports to all employees or even external users without proper visibility or audit trails. Similarly, AI-powered tools like Microsoft Copilot can inadvertently generate or share sensitive content based on unsecured or outdated data sources. These scenarios not only increase the risk of data leaks but also violate NIST’s requirements for data confidentiality, integrity, and access governance.
• Compliance Automation & Documentation
  Manual processes for audits, policy updates, and incident tracking significantly slow down compliance efforts and increase the risk of human error. For example, if a security team relies on spreadsheets and email threads to track policy changes or user access incidents, it becomes difficult to maintain consistent documentation or respond quickly to compliance audits. In the event of a data breach, this lack of automation can delay incident response and make it challenging to produce the detailed records required by NIST controls such as IR-6 (Incident Reporting) or AU-2 (Audit Events). Automation is critical to ensuring timely, accurate, and scalable compliance reporting
• Evolving Standards & Scalability
  Emerging NIST updates (e.g., CSF 2.0) demand tools that can adapt to new threats like Generative AI and Copilot capabilities many existing SaaS security solutions lack.

Forcepoint CASB Enables NIST-Compliant Security

Forcepoint CASB bridges the gap between SaaS app and cloud adoption and compliance. It provides deep visibility and control across SaaS and IaaS environments, empowering organizations to meet NIST requirements while optimizing cloud security.

The table below outlines how Forcepoint CASB aligns with key NIST Cybersecurity Framework functions and corresponding control requirements. 

To Conclude

Achieving NIST compliance in a SaaS app-first world can be complex however with the right tools, it’s entirely achievable. Forcepoint CASB empowers organizations with the visibility, control, and automation needed to align with NIST standards while securing sensitive data across cloud environments.

By unifying advanced threat protection, robust data security, and consistent policy enforcement, Forcepoint CASB simplifies compliance without slowing innovation. It’s not just about meeting standards; it’s also about doing so with speed, scale, and confidence.