Certifications

Updated Date: April 30, 2021

Government Regulations

F5 maintains an active product certification and evaluation program—aligned with government regulations—for maintaining a secure IT environment.

Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 140-2

F5 offers virtual editions (VEs), full-box FIPS platforms, integrated hardware security module (HSM) PCI cards, and external (network HSM) FIPS solutions to meet the most rigorous compliance requirements and architectures. For details, please see the chart below.

For customers who only require a FIPS 140-2 Level 1 solution, the F5 FIPS BIG-IP VE incorporates a NIST-validated, software-based, cryptographic module for x86 platforms.

F5 full-box FIPS platforms provide device-level validation at FIPS 140-2 Level 2, including the application of tamper evident stickers.

F5 also offers a select set of BIG-IP platforms, which include an HSM that supports a FIPS 140-2 Level 2 implementation for RSA cryptographic key generation, use, and protection. Keys generated on, or imported into, a BIG-IP integrated HSM are not extractable in plain-text format. BIG-IP hardware devices with integrated HSMs come with a sealed epoxy cover that, if removed, will render the card useless and the keys inaccessible. For additional protection, several platforms support a FIPS 140-2 Level 3 implementation of the internal HSM. This security rating means that the internal HSM card includes tamper-resistance, which recognizes physical access attempts, cryptographic module manipulation, and/or tampering, and will destroy the keys and render the card useless.

Finally, F5 BIG-IP supports external (network) HSMs; see the table below for details.

FIPS Integration Support in the Public Cloud

• AWS CloudHSM – With CloudHSM, you can manage your own encryption keys using FIPS 140-2 Level 3 validated HSMs. BIG-IP v14.1.0 and AWS versions 1.0.18 and 1.1.0.
• Equinix SmartKey – HSM-grade security in an easy-to-use cloud service with built-in encryption and tokenization, and FIPS 140-2 Level 3 certification. BIG-IP v14.1.0 and SmartKey client version 2.9.804.

F5 FIPS Cryptographic Modules

Integrated Cryptographic Modules

External Cryptographic Modules

Historical FIPS

F5 BIG-IP 6900F and 8900F, while FIPS 140-2 compliant, cannot support a necessary firmware upgrade to their HSM, and therefore, have been moved to a historical FIPS list. To find the certificate, go to the CMVP Validated Module search page and perform an Advanced search with “Validation Status” = “Historical”.

Key benefits of using F5 FIPS-compliant solutions:

• High-performance SSL—Industry-leading performance, with industry recommended standards.
• Unified platform—BIG-IP is able to consolidate an HSM that provides secure key storage with application delivery solution that has SSL key management and certificate management on a single device. Other solutions require a separate system or a FIPS-certified card for each web server, but the BIG-IP system’s key management framework allows a highly scalable secure infrastructure that can handle higher traffic levels. Organizations can also easily add new services to the infrastructure.
• Secure resources—F5 solutions safeguard the integrity of businesses by keeping corporate resources safe and protecting corporate brands.

DFARS 252.204-7012 / NIST SP 800-171 for Confidential Unclassified Information (CUI) is a US Department of Defense Contractor mandate as of December 2017, and is met through FIPS validated solutions covering asymmetric and symmetric crypto operations. Specific F5 FIPS platforms meet this requirement directly, or through the addition of the F5 FIPS module. See above for qualifying platforms and details.
 

Common Criteria for Information Technology Security Evaluation (Common Criteria, CC)

Common Criteria is an international standard (ISO 15408) for the evaluation of security properties of an IT product. This set of requirements evaluates hardware, software, firewalls, and servers. The evaluation goal is to provide a level of assurance that a device or software securely handles data, and has no elements that could compromise its integrity. 

Common Criteria provides assurance to the U.S. Department of Defense and federal intelligence agencies that products they purchase follow presidential requirements for operating secure information systems. Other federal agencies and some financial enterprises find it significantly easier to buy Common Criteria-approved products for their sensitive deployments. F5 has achieved certifications against the Network Device and Firewall Collaborative Protection Profiles and Protection Profile Modules, as well as EAL 2+ and EAL 4+ certifications. See chart and links below for details.

Common Criteria Certification

Commercial Solutions for Classified (CSfC)

CSfC is a National Security Agency / Central Security Service (NSA/CSS) program to enable commercial products to be used in layered solutions protecting classified National Security Systems (NSS) data. There are two parts to this program: vendors apply to have their products listed on one or more of the components lists; and then integrators can choose from products on those lists to create solutions.  All listed components must have both Common Criteria Certification and FIPS validation for the product to be listed on the component list.

United States Government IPv6 Conformance Certification (USGv6)

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) declared that all federal agencies are required to use IPv6 in their networks in OMB Memorandum M-05-22. United States Government IPv6 Conformance Certification (USGv6) is a set of technical standards for the acquisition of IPv6 capable hosts, routers, and network security devices. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) created the USGv6 conformance standards to support adoption of IPv6 in the U.S. government.

F5 BIG-IP is IPv6 Ready and USGv6 certified. View the announcement: F5 Receives IPv6-Ready Gold Logo and USGv6 Certifications

Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC) Public Key Enabled (PKE)

The Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC) of the U.S. Department of Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) provides risk-based Test Evaluation & Certification services, tools, and environments to ensure and enable the rapid deployment of interoperable and operationally effective information technology and national security systems. Clients or servers are tested to assure they are public key enabled (PKE) and able to provide security services, such as authentication, confidentiality, non-repudiation and access control. The JITC PKE test areas include NIST and JITC certifications, Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP), Certificate Revocation Lists (CRLs), and DoD Common Access Cards (CAC).

F5 BIG-IP is certified by the Department of Defense as PUBLIC KEY-ENABLED (PKE). View the announcement: F5 Receives Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC) Certification

NIST 800-53

NIST Special Publication 800-53, Security and Privacy Controls for Federal Information Systems and Organizations, is a core standard defining how to approach information security and risk management within the federal government. Developed by NIST, DoD, the Intelligence Community, and the Committee on National Security Systems, this standard provides guidance on continuous monitoring and FISMA requirements. It also supports a risk-based approach to protecting critical missions and business functions.

F5 has distilled this 240-plus page document into an F5 iApp for NIST 800-53 Rev 4. The iApp provides several pages of relevant questions and tasks to assist the administrator in applying the relevant security controls on their BIG-IP device, saving organizations hours of management time and resources.

If your agency is looking to improve the DIACAP process, or looking to comply with FISMA, then the F5 NIST 800-53 Rev 4 iApp will help ensure the proper configuration settings on the BIG-IP are reviewed and set.

Learn more about using the F5 iApp Template

Department of Defense Information Network Approved Product List

The US Department of Defense DoDIN APL is a single consolidated list of products that have completed Interoperability (IO) and Information Assurance (IA) certification. DoDIN APL certifications verify the system complies with and is configured consistent with the DISA Field Security Office (FSO) Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIG).

For more information about the DoDIN APL process visit the DoDIN APL Testing and Certification Website.

F5, Inc. Accessibility Conformance Reports

The reports below cover the degree of conformance for the following accessibility standard/guidelines:

• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2
• Revised Section 508 standards published January 18, 2017 and corrected January 22, 2018

Revised Section 508 Edition (Based on VPAT® Version 2.4) – F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) and Access Guided Configuration (AGC)

Revised Section 508 Edition (Based on VPAT® Version 2.4) – F5 BIG-IP LTM

Revised Section 508 Edition (Based on VPAT® Version 2.4) – F5 BIG-IP ASM

Additional Certifications

To get more information on the many other certifications F5 holds, contact F5 sales.