Who is Center for Internet Security?
Center for Internet Security (CIS) is a nonprofit cybersecurity organization that develops and maintains consensus-based security benchmarks, control frameworks, and shared services for securing IT systems and critical infrastructure.
- Publisher of the CIS Critical Security Controls (cybersecurity framework) and CIS Benchmarks (configuration standards).
- Operates cybersecurity services for U.S. state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) governments, including threat monitoring and incident response support (managed security services).
- Provides hardened system images and configuration resources for common operating systems and cloud platforms (endpoint and cloud security hardening).
- Offers tools, memberships, and resources to help public and private entities assess, implement, and measure security controls (governance, risk, and compliance).
- Collaborates with government agencies and industry partners on cyber threat sharing and coordinated defense for critical infrastructure sectors (threat intelligence and information sharing).
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More About Center for Internet Security
Center for Internet Security focuses on practical cyber defense guidance and shared services used by enterprises, public sector agencies, and operators of critical infrastructure. Its work centers on codifying prescriptive security practices into frameworks and technical artifacts that organizations can operationalize across heterogeneous IT environments.
CIS is widely associated with the CIS Critical Security Controls (cybersecurity framework), a prioritized set of safeguards that map to common attack techniques and are designed for implementation across enterprise networks, endpoints, applications, and cloud resources. These controls are often used alongside or mapped to other frameworks and standards, such as risk management frameworks, regulatory baselines, and sector-specific requirements. For technical teams, the controls provide a structured way to select and phase control implementation, align security tooling, and measure security posture over time.
The organization also maintains CIS Benchmarks (configuration benchmarks), which are consensus-based security configuration guidelines for operating systems, databases, middleware, network devices, and cloud services. These benchmarks provide parameter-level configuration recommendations, often expressed as profiles that can be implemented through configuration management tools, group policy mechanisms, Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) templates, and Policy as Code (PaC) engines. Many enterprises reference CIS Benchmarks when designing hardened images, golden builds, and baseline policies for servers, workstations, and cloud workloads.
CIS supports adoption of its guidance through artifacts such as hardened Virtual Machine (VM) images and configuration templates (endpoint and cloud security hardening). These resources are engineered to align with CIS Benchmarks, enabling organizations to deploy systems with pre-applied security settings rather than retrofitting them post-deployment. This approach is used in cloud environments and virtualized data centers where standardized images are central to provisioning pipelines.
The organization operates cybersecurity services for U.S. state, local, tribal, and territorial entities, including network monitoring, Security Operations (SecOps) support, and incident response assistance (managed security services). These services help resource-constrained public entities monitor traffic, detect threats, and coordinate responses using shared infrastructure and processes. Information from these operations feeds into broader cyber threat sharing and situational awareness activities.
From a directory and marketplace perspective, Center for Internet Security is aligned with cybersecurity frameworks and standards, configuration management and hardening, Managed Security Services (MSS) for public sector entities, and threat intelligence and information sharing. Its artifacts and services are commonly integrated into Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) programs, SecOps workflows, and infrastructure provisioning pipelines in both enterprise and government environments.
Our description of Center for Internet Security. Updated December 2025.
