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Supplier Assessment Questionnaire

Supplier Assessment Questionnaire template: The assessment of one supplier and the products or services it provides, before award or renewal and at each review after that, with the organization's scoping and criticality answers, the supplier's questionnaire, the organization's own research with its sources, a rating against the same core risk factors for every supplier, and the decision, with a register of every supplier assessment, as SP 800-53 SR-6 requires.

TypeProgram stageStatusTemplate versionNIST basis
Form or registerMatureDraft1.0.0SP 800-53 release 5.2.0

The assessment of one supplier and the products or services it provides, before award or renewal and at each review after that, with the organization’s scoping and criticality answers, the supplier’s questionnaire, the organization’s own research with its sources, a rating against the same core risk factors for every supplier, and the decision, with a register of every supplier assessment, as SP 800-53 SR-6 requires.

ControlTitle
SR-6Supplier Assessments and Reviews
SR-5Acquisition Strategies, Tools, and Methods
RA-3(1)Supply Chain Risk Assessment
VariantReady to adoptAnnotated
All baselinesWord · MarkdownWord · Markdown

The register as a spreadsheet: CSV, with one column per field.

Assessment IDAssessment typeSupplierProducts or services assessedAssessorDate completedNext assessment due
Fill in: unique ID, as in the registerFill in: initial (before award), renewal, annual, or triggered, with the triggerFill in: supplier legal nameFill in: products or services, with versions or part numbersFill in: name and titleFill in: dateFill in: date
  • The Chief Information Security Officer, through the supply chain risk management team, shall assess and review the supply chain risks of each supplier, and of the systems, components or services it provides, Fill in: the frequency at which to assess and review the supply chain-related risks associated with suppliers or contractors and the systems, system components, or system services they provide Typical: before each contract award or renewal, and annually for suppliers of critical components and services. (SR-6)
  • Every assessment shall rate all the core risk factors in Part D, and record the source of each finding. (SR-6)

Part A. Scope and criticality (completed by the organization)

Section titled “Part A. Scope and criticality (completed by the organization)”
ItemResponse
Requested byFill in: name, title and organizational unit
Purpose of the assessmentFill in: for example a new purchase, a contract renewal, a supplier change, or a review after a notification
Systems that use or will use the product or serviceFill in: system names and identifiers
Description of the product or service, and how it will be usedFill in: description
Product or service typeFill in: hardware, software, firmware, cloud or other external service, development, integration, maintenance or disposal service
Where it sits in the systemFill in: for example inside the authorization boundary, at the boundary, or an external service the system connects to
Contract, solicitation or agreementFill in: number, value and term, or “not yet awarded”
Point in the life cycleFill in: for example market research, source selection, before award, operational use, renewal
#QuestionAnswer
A2.1Does the product or service perform a security function, such as authentication, encryption, logging or boundary protection? If so, which?Fill in: answer
A2.2Will it have privileged or administrative access to the organization’s networks, operational technology or sensitive platforms?Fill in: answer
A2.3Could its compromise or failure cause a system failure or serious degradation of a mission or business function?Fill in: answer
A2.4If it failed or were compromised, is there an independent, reliable way to keep the function going?Fill in: answer
A2.5Will it store, process or transmit sensitive information, such as personal, health or payment information, or have access to systems that do?Fill in: answer
A2.6Will it connect to a platform the organization provides to its customers or the public?Fill in: answer
A2.7Will the supplier’s staff need physical access to the organization’s facilities, or remote access to its systems?Fill in: answer
A2.8How widely is, or will, the product or service be used across the organization?Fill in: answer
A2.9Is it available from other suppliers, and what would switching cost in money and time? Is it single-source?Fill in: answer
A2.10Does the organization keep spares or a reserve, and how well could it obtain the product or service during a major disruption?Fill in: answer
A2.11Is it made or developed in a location the organization considers a geopolitical risk?Fill in: answer
A2.12Is it fit for purpose, able to meet the required objectives and service levels?Fill in: answer

Criticality: Fill in: critical, if the criticality analysis (RA-9) identifies the product or service as critical or if A2.1 to A2.3 show it is; otherwise not critical.

Assessment depth: Fill in: full, for a critical product or service, or a supplier of one; standard, for any other.

Part B. Supplier questionnaire (completed by the supplier)

Section titled “Part B. Supplier questionnaire (completed by the supplier)”

Supplier contact for this questionnaire: Fill in: name, title, business email and phone.

#QuestionSupplier’s answerEvidence provided
B1.1Give your legal name, any other names you trade under, your parent company and your place of incorporation.Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B1.2Who owns or controls your company, directly or indirectly? Is any owner a foreign government or controlled by one?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B1.3Where are your headquarters and the facilities that research, develop, manufacture, test, package, distribute or support the product or service?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B1.4Do the laws of any country where you operate require you to share technology or data with that country’s government?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B1.5Do any of your officers, directors, staff or contractors have personal or professional ties to a foreign government?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B1.6Has your company been acquired, merged or significantly restructured in the last three years, or is such a change pending?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B1.7In the last three years, have you been subject to fines, sanctions, debarment, or litigation related to the product or service, its security or its delivery?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
#QuestionSupplier’s answerEvidence provided
B2.1Do you have a documented supply chain risk management program, with policies and procedures?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B2.2Have you identified your own critical suppliers for the product or service? How do you assess and monitor them and their suppliers?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B2.3Can you list the sources of the hardware, software and services you use to provide the product or service, including distributors?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B2.4Do you pass security and supply chain requirements down to your subcontractors and suppliers in your contracts with them?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B2.5Where will replacement components come from during the contract?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B2.6How do you make sure none of your suppliers or third-party components is on a list of prohibited sources or products?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
#QuestionSupplier’s answerEvidence provided
B3.1Which security framework or standard does your program follow, and what independent assessments, audits or certifications cover the product or service? Give the scope and period of each.Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B3.2Have you had a security incident or breach in the last three years that affected customers or the product or service? How were customers told?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B3.3How do you vet staff who work on the product or service, or on the organization’s account, and do you have an insider threat program?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B3.4Do your staff or your suppliers access customer or production environments remotely? How is that access controlled and logged?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B3.5Do your staff receive security training, including role-based training for developers and administrators?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence

B4. Product integrity and secure development

Section titled “B4. Product integrity and secure development”
#QuestionSupplier’s answerEvidence provided
B4.1Which secure development practices or framework do you follow, for example the NIST Secure Software Development Framework (SP 800-218)?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.2How do you protect your development and build environments and tools from tampering?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.3How do you select, check and keep track of open-source and third-party components before and after you use them?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.4Can you provide a software bill of materials, or for hardware a bill of materials covering logic-bearing parts and firmware?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.5Are releases, updates and firmware digitally signed, or published with hashes customers can verify?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.6How do you receive, prioritize and fix reported vulnerabilities, and in what time frames? Do you publish a vulnerability disclosure policy?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.7Do you run a product security incident response team, and how are customers told when a product they use is affected?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.8Until what date will the product be supported with security updates?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B4.9If the product uses cryptography, are its modules validated under the FIPS 140 standard? Give the certificate numbers.Fill in: answerFill in: evidence

B5. Logistics, delivery and counterfeit prevention

Section titled “B5. Logistics, delivery and counterfeit prevention”
#QuestionSupplier’s answerEvidence provided
B5.1Do you buy hardware only from original manufacturers or their authorized distributors or resellers?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B5.2What controls do you have to detect and prevent counterfeit, tampered or nonconforming parts, and do you report the ones you find?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B5.3Can you trace part numbers and serial numbers back to their manufacturers?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B5.4How are finished products stored and protected from tampering before shipment, and is inventory inspected periodically?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B5.5Do you ship in tamper-evident packaging, with tracked delivery and a documented chain of custody?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B5.6How do you destroy scrap, rejected and unused parts so they cannot re-enter the supply chain?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B5.7Have you analyzed events, natural or human-made, that could interrupt your supply, and what are your continuity arrangements?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
#QuestionSupplier’s answerEvidence provided
B6.1Will you notify the organization of a compromise or suspected compromise in your supply chain that may affect the product or service, and how quickly?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B6.2Will you share the results of independent assessments or audits of the product, service, or your development or manufacturing processes?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B6.3Do your agreements with your own suppliers require them to notify you of compromises?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence
B6.4Who is your contact for supply chain and security notices, and how is it kept current?Fill in: answerFill in: evidence

The answers in Part B are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge, and the supplier will tell Organization name of any material change to them during the contract.

NameTitleSignatureDate
Fill in: nameFill in: titleFill in: date

Part C. Research and verification (completed by the organization)

Section titled “Part C. Research and verification (completed by the organization)”
#CheckSources usedDate checkedFindingConfidence (high, medium or low)
C1Ownership, corporate family and key leadership, compared with B1Fill in: for example business registries, public filings, commercial company dataFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C2Indicators of foreign ownership, control or influenceFill in: sourcesFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C3Sanctions, exclusion and prohibited-source lists that apply to the organizationFill in: the lists checkedFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C4Litigation, fines, regulatory actions and fraudFill in: sourcesFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C5Breaches, incidents and intellectual property theft involving the supplierFill in: for example news, regulator disclosures, threat intelligenceFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C6Known vulnerabilities in the products, and how fast the supplier fixed past onesFill in: for example the National Vulnerability Database, CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, the supplier’s advisoriesFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C7Financial health and stabilityFill in: sourcesFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C8Quality and past performance: recalls, complaints, the organization’s own experienceFill in: sourcesFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C9Reports of counterfeit or nonconforming products associated with the supplierFill in: sourcesFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C10The supplier’s independent assessments and certifications: current, from a credible assessor, covering the product or service used, and their exceptionsFill in: the reports reviewedFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
C11Supplier answers checked against evidence: which answers, and what was seenFill in: the evidence reviewedFill in: dateFill in: findingFill in: confidence
  • The assessor shall check, against evidence or an independent source, every supplier answer that bears on a factor rated a high concern, and for a full assessment the answers to B1.2, B2.2, B3.1, B3.2 and B6.1 at least. (SR-6)
  • Each finding shall record the source it came from and the date it was checked; a factor for which nothing could be found shall be recorded as such, not left blank. (SR-6)

Part D. Risk analysis (completed by the organization)

Section titled “Part D. Risk analysis (completed by the organization)”

Rate every factor for every supplier, using the answers in Parts A and B and the findings in Part C.

FactorConsidersQuestions and checksConcern (none found, low, moderate or high)ConfidenceNotes
1. Criticality and relianceWhat the product or service does for the system, alternatives, single source, reservesA2.1 to A2.4, A2.8 to A2.10Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
2. Information and accessSensitive information, privileged, remote and physical access, connectionsA2.5 to A2.7, B3.4Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
3. Ownership, control or influenceOwners, foreign government control or influence, legal duties to share data, ties of key peopleB1.1 to B1.6, C1, C2Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
4. Geography and locationWhere the work is done; instability, natural hazards and trade route disruption thereA2.11, B1.3, B5.7Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
5. Company stability and past performanceFinancial health, restructuring, quality, recalls, the organization’s experienceB1.6, C7, C8Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
6. Compliance and legalFines, sanctions, exclusions, litigation, fraudB1.7, C3, C4Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
7. Security and supply chain risk management processesThe supplier’s program, independent assessments, personnel security, trainingB2.1, B3.1, B3.3, B3.5, C10Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
8. Sub-tier suppliersThe supplier’s ability to identify and assess its own second- and third-tier suppliers, and flow-downB2.2 to B2.6Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
9. Cybersecurity historyIncidents, breaches and theft at the supplierB3.2, C5Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
10. Product integrity and vulnerability handlingSecure development, build protection, bills of materials, signing, vulnerability response, support periodB4.1 to B4.9, C6Fill in: concern, or “not applicable” with the reasonFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
11. Counterfeit and nonconforming products, and deliveryAuthorized sources, counterfeit controls, traceability, packaging, chain of custody, scrapB5.1 to B5.6, C9Fill in: concern, or “not applicable” with the reasonFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
12. Notification and transparencyCompromise notice, sharing of assessment results, notice flowed downB6.1 to B6.4Fill in: concernFill in: confidenceFill in: notes
ElementLevelBasis
Threat: an adversary’s capability and intent to exploit the supplier, product or service, or a non-adversarial threat to itFill in: critical, high, moderate or lowFill in: the findings that set the level
Vulnerability: how exposed and how easily exploited the supplier’s or product’s weaknesses areFill in: critical, high, moderate or lowFill in: the findings that set the level
Impact: the harm to the organization if the product or service fails to perform as designed or is compromisedFill in: critical, high, moderate or lowFill in: criticality from Part A
Likelihood, from threat and vulnerabilityFill in: on the organization’s likelihood scaleFill in: basis
Risk, from likelihood and impactFill in: on the organization’s risk scaleFill in: basis
RiskRatingResponse (accept, mitigate, transfer or avoid)MeasuresOwnerTracked in
Fill in: riskFill in: ratingFill in: responseFill in: for example added contract terms (SR-5), notification terms (SR-8), inspection before use (SR-10), a second source, or limits on the supplier’s accessFill in: roleFill in: risk register or POA&M item

Decision: Fill in: proceed; proceed with the conditions listed; or do not proceed.

Conditions: Fill in: conditions, or “none”.

  • A contract for a critical component or service shall not be awarded or renewed until this assessment is complete and each risk found is accepted or has a planned response. (SR-6)
  • A risk that remains above the supply chain risk tolerance of a system that relies on the supplier shall be accepted by that system’s authorizing official before award or renewal, and recorded in the system’s Supply Chain Risk Management Plan. (SR-6, SR-2a)
  • The results shall be shared with other organizations only as applicable rules, policies, agreements or contracts allow or require. (SR-6)
NameRoleDecision or recommendationSignatureDate
Fill in: nameAssessor, supply chain risk management teamFill in: recommendationFill in: date
Fill in: nameLead of the supply chain risk management teamFill in: recommendationFill in: date
Fill in: nameSystem owner of each system that relies on the supplierFill in: decisionFill in: date
Fill in: nameAuthorizing official, where a risk above tolerance is acceptedFill in: decisionFill in: date
  • The supply chain risk management team shall reassess the supplier Fill in: the frequency at which to assess and review the supply chain-related risks associated with suppliers or contractors and the systems, system components, or system services they provide Typical: before each contract award or renewal, and annually for suppliers of critical components and services, and when any of these occurs: a change in the supplier’s ownership or control, a merger or acquisition, a move of manufacturing, development or support to another country, a compromise notification or a breach at the supplier, a counterfeit or tampered component traced to it, a new sanctions or exclusion listing, or a change in what the organization buys from it. (SR-6)
  • For suppliers of critical components and services, the team shall monitor publicly available information Fill in: frequency, for example monthly for indications of stolen information, poor development or quality control practices, information spillage or counterfeits, and record what it found. (SR-6)
Monitoring activityFrequencyWhoLast doneResult
Public-source monitoring of the supplierFill in: frequencyFill in: roleFill in: dateFill in: result
Review of new independent assessments from the supplierFill in: for example when issuedFill in: roleFill in: dateFill in: result
Check against sanctions and exclusion listsFill in: for example before each order and quarterlyFill in: roleFill in: dateFill in: result

The completed assessment, the supplier’s answers and the evidence are kept for Fill in: retention period, for example the life of the contract plus three years, with access limited to Fill in: roles, since they may contain the supplier’s proprietary information.

41 U.S.C. § 1326(a) makes the head of each executive agency responsible for assessing the supply chain risk posed by the acquisition and use of covered articles, and for prioritizing those assessments based on the criticality of the mission, system, component, service or asset. NIST SP 800-161 Rev. 1, Appendix E, gives federal agencies baseline risk factors (Table 28 in section E.2.2) to address, at a minimum, for assessments of critical sources and critical covered articles, and lists federal prohibition and restriction lists to examine as part of the assessment, such as the Treasury sanctions lists and the exclusions in the System for Award Management. Section E.2.1 says determining assessment priorities, evaluating impact and making risk response decisions are inherently governmental functions that cannot be outsourced, although a qualified, vetted third party may support research and documentation. Section E.2.3 sets a five-level supply chain risk severity schema, and section E.2.4 says risks at Level 3 and above are “substantial risk” under the Federal Acquisition Security Council’s rule and require sharing with the Council through its information sharing agency. Under 41 CFR 201-1.201(b), an executive agency must expeditiously submit supply chain risk information to that agency when the Council requests it, or when the agency determines there is a reasonable basis to conclude that a substantial supply chain risk exists in connection with a source or covered article. Section E.3.1 (Table 30) lists the minimum content of an assessment record. Statute checked in the United States Code, 2024 edition, and regulation in the eCFR, as of October 2026.

  • Assessments of critical sources and critical covered articles shall address every baseline risk factor in SP 800-161 Rev. 1, Appendix E, Table 28, recording where each is covered in Part D and any factor added. (SR-6)
  • The assessor shall check the supplier and the covered article against the federal prohibition and restriction lists that SP 800-161 Rev. 1, Appendix E, section E.2.2 names, and any other federal restriction that applies, and record the result in check C3. (SR-6)
  • Agency officials shall set assessment priorities, evaluate impact and make each risk response decision; a contractor may support research and documentation but shall not make those decisions. (SR-6)
  • The assessor shall assign each assessed risk a level of the supply chain risk severity schema in SP 800-161 Rev. 1, Appendix E, section E.2.3, and record the level and the reason in Part D. (SR-6)
  • When an assessment finds a reasonable basis to conclude that a substantial supply chain risk exists, the Chief Information Security Officer shall submit the relevant supply chain risk information to the Federal Acquisition Security Council’s information sharing agency, as 41 CFR 201-1.201(b) requires, and escalate the assessment to senior agency officials and legal counsel. (SR-6)
  • The assessment record shall include at least the content in SP 800-161 Rev. 1, Appendix E, Table 30, including the methodology used and any deviation from it, the data sources, the confidence in the findings, and review and clearance by senior leadership and legal counsel for a risk assessed as substantial. (SR-6)
SP 800-161 Rev. 1 Table 28 baseline risk factorWhere this form covers it
PurposePart A1
CriticalityPart A2; factor 1
Information and dataA2.5; factor 2
Reliance on the covered article or sourceA2.8 to A2.10; factor 1
User or operational environmentA1; the system security plan and the Supply Chain Risk Management Plan
External agency interdependenciesFill in: where recorded, for example A1 and the information exchange agreements
Functionality, features and components of the covered articleFactor 10
Company (source) informationFactor 5
Quality and past performanceFactor 5
PersonnelB3.3; factor 7
PhysicalB5.4, B5.7; factor 4
GeopoliticalFactor 4
Foreign ownership, control or influenceFactor 3
Compliance and legalFactor 6
Fraud, corruption, sanctions and alignment with government interestsC3, C4; factor 6
CybersecurityFactor 9
Counterfeit and non-conforming productsFactor 11
Supply chain relationships, visibility and controlsFactor 8
Assessment IDSupplierProducts or servicesSystems that rely on itCriticalityAssessment typeDate completedOverall riskDecisionOpen risks and where trackedNext assessment dueAssessor
Fill in: IDFill in: supplierFill in: products or servicesFill in: systemsFill in: critical or not criticalFill in: initial, renewal, annual or triggeredFill in: dateFill in: risk levelFill in: proceed, proceed with conditions, or do not proceedFill in: number, with risk register or POA&M itemsFill in: dateFill in: name

Independent guidance, not an official NIST publication. Control text is from NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 and SP 800-53A (public domain). Original content is licensed CC BY 4.0; program templates and the downloadable kit are dedicated to the public domain under CC0 1.0.