NIST CSF tables

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated August 11, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of NIST CSF tables

    The NIST CSF tables in ServiceNow provide structured tracking and reporting capabilities for cybersecurity activities, gaps, controls, risks, issues, and remediation related to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF). These tables enable efficient management and analysis of cybersecurity posture within the ServiceNow Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) application, helping organizations identify and address compliance gaps and risks effectively.

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    Key Tables and Their Purposes

    • Target [sngrctarget]: Serves as a core, shared entity for GRC and use-case content packs, tracking attributes specific to cybersecurity targets. Ensures unique references to entities.
    • NIST CSF Activity [snirmnistcsfnistcsfactivity]: Tracks cybersecurity activities relevant to targets, supporting gap analysis and identification of non-compliant controls, risks, issues, failed indicators, and action plans.
    • Gaps [snirmnistcsfm2mpolicystatenistcsfact]: Tracks unimplemented control objectives as gaps, facilitating detailed reporting and drill-down. This many-to-many (m2m) table associates gaps with targets.
    • Non-compliant Control [snirmnistcsfm2mcxontrolsnistcsfact]: Tracks controls identified as non-compliant under the framework core, supporting reporting and drill-down. It associates non-compliant controls with targets through an m2m relationship.
    • Risk [snirmnistcsfm2mrisksnistcsfactivities]: Tracks risks connected to implemented cybersecurity controls. Enables detailed risk reporting and associates risks with targets.
    • Issue [snirmnistcsfm2missuesnistcsfact]: Tracks issues related to controls and their associated risks. Supports comprehensive reporting and links issues to targets.
    • Action Plan [snirmnistcsfm2mremediationnistcsfact]: Tracks remediation tasks or action plans for identified issues. Facilitates reporting and associates action plans to targets.
    • Failed Indicators [snirmnistcsfm2mindicatorsnistcsfact]: Tracks failed indicators related to targets, controls, or risks. Supports reporting and associates failed indicators with targets.
    • Related Control Objectives [sncompliancem2mpolicystmtpolicystmt]: Tracks associations between control objectives at the same hierarchical level, extending the base parent-child relationships to relate peer control objectives.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Enables comprehensive tracking of cybersecurity activities aligned with NIST CSF requirements.
    • Facilitates identification and management of compliance gaps, non-compliant controls, risks, and issues within your cybersecurity framework.
    • Supports detailed reporting and drill-down capabilities, improving visibility into cybersecurity posture and remediation efforts.
    • Provides structured relationships between targets, controls, risks, issues, and remediation plans to streamline governance processes.
    • Enhances the ability to relate and analyze control objectives for better framework alignment and risk management.

    A few tables are impacted by the NIST CSF guidance.

    Table Purpose
    Target [sn_grc_target] Target is a core table of design to be shared component among the ServiceNow GRC application and GRC use-case content packs.Target is like entity in its purpose, but is used to track any attributes specific to use-case content packs. No two target records can reference the same entity at any time.
    NIST CSF Activity [sn_irm_nist_csf_nist_csf_activity] NIST CSF Activity table is used to track cybersecurity activity relevant for a target. The activity also helps in performing gap analysis that identifies the gaps, non-complaint controls, risks, issues, failed indicators and action plans for a cybersecurity activity.
    Gaps [sn_irm_nist_csf_m2m_policy_state_nist_csf_act] Gaps table in NIST CSF is used to track control objectives that aren’t yet implemented as gaps. This table comes handy for reporting and drill down purposes. It's an m2m table that associates Gaps to Targets.
    Non-compliant Control [sn_irm_nist_csf_m2m_cxontrols_nist_csf_act] Non-compliant Control table in NIST CSF is used to track controls that are identified as non-compliant. Only cybersecurity control objectives as defined by the framework core which are implemented as controls and non-compliant are tracked. This table comes handy for reporting and drill down purposes. It's an m2m table that associates Non-compliant Controls to Targets.
    Risk [sn_irm_nist_csf_m2m_risks_nist_csf_activities] Risk table in NIST CSF is used to track risks that are associated with controls that have been implemented for cybersecurity control objectives as defined by the framework core. This table comes handy for reporting and drill down purposes. It's an m2m table that associates Risks to Targets.
    Issue [sn_irm_nist_csf_m2m_issues_nist_csf_act] Issue table in NIST CSF is used to track issues that are associated with controls that have been implemented for cybersecurity control objectives as defined by the framework core. Issues of risks associated with these controls are also included in the metric. This table comes handy for reporting and drill down purposes. It's an m2m table that associates Issues to Targets.
    Action Plan [sn_irm_nist_csf_m2m_remediation_nist_csf_act] Action Plan table in NIST CSF is used to track the action plans that are identified for the issues. This table comes handy for reporting and drill down purposes. It's an m2m table that associates Action Plans (remediation tasks) to Targets.
    Failed Indicators [sn_irm_nist_csf_m2m_indicators_nist_csf_act] Failed indicators table in NIST CSF is used to track the failed indicators of the target and the control or risk. This table comes handy for reporting and drill down purposes. It's an m2m table that associates Failed Indicators to Targets.
    Related Control Objectives [sn_compliance_m2m_policy_stmt_policy_stmt] Related Control Objectives table in NIST CSF is used to track the associations between control objectives. In base implementation, parent and child control objectives are supported, but this table introduces a concept to relate the control objectives at the same level.