Our Purpose
The Cloud Service Providers – Advisory Board (CSP-AB) is a trade association representing the world’s premier cloud companies in order to advance policies and standards that empower secure, scalable, and impactful cloud adoption across the public and private sectors. Our members are at the forefront of digital government transformation, ensuring that cutting-edge, accredited services seamlessly support both civil servants delivering vital programs and the citizens who rely on them.
Since the launch of FedRAMP, cloud service providers (CSPs) have proactively engaged with the FedRAMP PMO, the former Joint Authorization Board (JAB), the new FedRAMP Board, and other key stakeholders to share technical insights, best practices, and forward-thinking recommendations. Our goal? To inject industry expertise into critical policy and standards discussions focused on ensuring that secure cloud services meet evolving government needs. The CSP-AB was created to formalize and amplify this collaboration—providing an ongoing, structured channel for engagement across FedRAMP and other relevant frameworks shaping the future of cloud security.Our work is focused on unlocking efficiencies for Federal agencies, CSPs, and third-party assessment organizations (3PAOs), streamlining compliance efforts, while raising the bar for security. By aligning stakeholders on the most pressing issues, we help drive focus where it matters most. Our efforts will pave the way for more agile, responsive, and innovative standards that keep pace with technological advancement.
Our Priorities
Through its strategic priorities across FedRAMP, FISMA, and Continuous Monitoring, the CSP-AB is a critical voice to advance trusted cloud adoption and services. By streamlining authorizations, advocating for risk-based assessments, and enabling real-time monitoring, the CSP-AB is helping to shape frameworks that foster secure, scalable, and compliant cloud adoption. This collaborative approach will ensure that cloud technologies remain resilient, responsive, and ready to meet the evolving public and private sector needs.
OUR FOCUS AREAS
FedRAMP: Streamlining Authorization & Expanding Reciprocity
FedRAMP is at the heart of public sector cloud adoption, and the CSP-AB is focused on making this process more efficient and adaptable to evolving government needs.
Advancing Reciprocity Across Frameworks
Drive adoption of reciprocity agreements between FedRAMP and other compliance frameworks (e.g., DoD CC SRG, StateRAMP, SecNumCloud) to reduce audit duplication and streamline approvals.
Advocate for more alignment between FedRAMP, international standards (e.g., ISO 27001), and Zero Trust Architecture principles.
Accelerating FedRAMP Authorizations
Collaborate with the FedRAMP Board to shorten time-to-ATO (Authorization to Operate) without compromising security rigor.
Encourage the adoption of pre-approved templates, reusable controls, and shared service models to streamline assessments.
Feedback Loop on Policy & Innovation
Provide continuous feedback to the FedRAMP PMO on how emerging technologies like AI/ML and multi-cloud strategies can be securely integrated into FedRAMP policies.
Promote open dialogue between agencies and cloud providers to align expectations and ensure standards evolve with innovation.
FISMA: Ensuring Comprehensive Risk Management
The Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) provides the broader cybersecurity foundation for government systems. CSP-AB’s role is to support tighter integration between FISMA’s risk management practices and cloud services.
Alignment of FedRAMP with FISMA Requirements
Ensure FedRAMP controls seamlessly map to the NIST Risk Management Framework (RMF) and FISMA standards, reducing compliance burdens for cloud providers and agencies.
Advocate for enhanced clarity in how cloud-based services contribute to the overall FISMA reporting process, enabling agencies to better understand and meet their security obligations.
Promote Risk-Based Assessments
Shift focus from static compliance checklists to risk-based assessments that consider threat vectors and real-time vulnerabilities.
Collaborate with federal stakeholders to define impact levels for emerging cloud technologies and align them with FISMA’s requirements.
Support Modernization through Policy Simplification
Engage with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to simplify FISMA reporting requirements for cloud services, making compliance more agile.
Advocate for policy flexibility to support continuous modernization and integration of new cloud capabilities across agencies.
Continuous Monitoring: Proactive Security & Compliance at Scale
Continuous monitoring (ConMon) is essential for maintaining security in dynamic cloud environments. CSP-AB is committed to advancing proactive, automated approaches to compliance and security monitoring.
Fostering Automation & Integration
Promote the use of automated compliance monitoring tools, including Infrastructure as Code (IaC) policies, to streamline ongoing assessments.
Collaborate with the FedRAMP PMO and agencies to develop frameworks for real-time security reporting, minimizing manual intervention.
Enable Continuous ATO (cATO) Adoption
Support the transition to Continuous Authorization to Operate (cATO) models by helping agencies define the technical and policy requirements for continuous security validation.
Partner with 3PAOs to create reusable ConMon frameworks that accelerate adoption across sectors.
Enhance Threat Intelligence Sharing
Advocate for real-time threat intelligence sharing between government agencies and CSPs, ensuring emerging vulnerabilities are quickly mitigated.
Promote collaboration on continuous logging and monitoring standards to align with best practices from Zero Trust architectures.
Our Members
The Cloud Service Provider Advisory Board consists of delegates from our member organizations, including:
