Prepare for GovRAMP Low with evidence collected once

GovRAMP Low is the lowest of GovRAMP's three impact levels for verifying cloud products used by US state and local government. Its security controls are based on the FedRAMP Rev. 5 Low baseline from NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5, totalling 153 controls and enhancements across 18 families. It suits products where a security incident would have a limited adverse effect on the government organisation, its operations or the people it serves.

Cloud service providers need GovRAMP Low when a US state, local, tribal or education customer asks for GovRAMP status and the product handles only low-impact data. GovRAMP's Data Classification Tool helps providers and government buyers decide the right impact level. If a product stores or processes more sensitive data, such as personal information, the buyer will normally expect GovRAMP Moderate rather than Low.

The three GovRAMP impact levels differ in the sensitivity of data they cover and the number of controls required. Low is based on the FedRAMP Rev. 5 Low baseline, Moderate on the FedRAMP Rev. 5 Moderate baseline and High on the FedRAMP Rev. 5 High baseline. Low has the smallest control set, so it is quicker to implement, but it is only appropriate for low-impact data.

GovRAMP Ready means a product meets GovRAMP's minimum mandatory requirements for the Low level, attested in a Readiness Assessment Report from a GovRAMP 3PAO and validated by the GovRAMP PMO. Authorized is the highest status: it requires a full security package, including a System Security Plan, a Security Assessment Report covering all required Low controls and a penetration test, followed by approval from a sponsoring government or the GovRAMP Approvals Committee.

You achieve GovRAMP Low by becoming a GovRAMP member, confirming the Low impact level, implementing the Low baseline controls and documenting them in GovRAMP's Low impact templates. You then engage a GovRAMP 3PAO to assess the product for Ready or Authorized status and submit the security package to the GovRAMP PMO for review. After verification you must keep up continuous monitoring and annual assessments.

GovRAMP Low is built on the FedRAMP Rev. 5 Low baseline, so the control sets are closely aligned. GovRAMP publishes a Federal Overlay that maps its Low, Moderate and High requirements to the matching FedRAMP baselines. Providers that already hold or are pursuing FedRAMP can use GovRAMP's Fast Track option to submit their FedRAMP package and 3PAO results to the GovRAMP PMO instead of starting again.

ISO 27001 and SOC 2 do not replace GovRAMP Low, because GovRAMP requires an assessment by a GovRAMP 3PAO against NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 controls. However, much of the underlying work overlaps, such as access control, logging, incident response and change management. Mapping your existing controls and evidence to the Low baseline can significantly reduce the effort needed to prepare.

Yes. GovRAMP Low is supported in OneClickComply today. Controls and evidence you already hold for frameworks such as ISO 27001, SOC 2 or NIST SP 800-53 can be mapped to the Low baseline. OneClickComply does not issue GovRAMP statuses: these come from GovRAMP after a 3PAO assessment.