Automated FIPS 140-3 Policy Enforcement

The audit started at sunrise. Every system touched by cryptography was under the spotlight. Compliance wasn’t optional. The target was clear: enforce FIPS 140-3 policy without blind spots, without delay.

FIPS 140-3 sets the U.S. standard for securing cryptographic modules. It defines requirements for design, implementation, and operation. It demands validation by accredited labs. The enforcement of this policy means every algorithm, key management process, and random number generator meets these exact rules. Any deviation is risk.

Policy enforcement begins with detection. Your systems must identify every cryptographic function in use, from TLS endpoints to stored keys. Then comes validation: verify that each function uses approved algorithms, modes, and key lengths. No SHA-1. No weak AES modes. No unapproved RNGs. The rules are precise, and enforcement must be automated to catch violations at scale.

Centralized compliance controls give you a single source of truth. Continuous monitoring ensures that changes in code, configuration, or dependencies don’t drift from FIPS 140-3 standards. Integrating these checks into CI/CD pipelines prevents non-compliant components from reaching production. Runtime enforcement blocks connections that fail handshake tests or use invalid certificates.

Documentation is part of enforcement. FIPS 140-3 requires evidence of compliance: module validation certificates, test results, and change logs. Automating this reporting makes audits faster and less painful. Without documentation, policy enforcement is incomplete.

Strong enforcement protects against legal exposure, failed audits, and security breaches that exploit weak cryptography. It also signals maturity in security engineering. The cost of setting it up is far less than the cost of responding to an incident rooted in policy failure.

You can harden your cryptographic stack today with automated FIPS 140-3 policy enforcement. See it running in minutes at hoop.dev.