CAVP Archives - Corsec Security, Inc.®

Deconstructing FIPS 140-3: Myth #5 – FIPS Validation Isn’t Worth the Cost or Time

Mary Broerman — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 19:20:27 +0000

When organizations evaluate FIPS 140-3 validation, the conversation often begins with cost and timeline. Certification requires planning, engineering effort, testing, and coordination with the Cryptographic Module Validation Program (CMVP), making it easy to view validation primarily as a compliance expense.

Given these requirements, it is understandable that organizations question whether the investment is justified, particularly when product teams are focused on accelerating releases, entering new markets, and meeting customer demands.

However, that perspective overlooks a more important consideration: the business value that validation can create. For organizations that sell into federal, defense, critical infrastructure, and other regulated markets, validation can open new markets, strengthen product security, reduce compliance friction, and enhance competitive positioning.

This post is the fifth and final installment in our Deconstructing FIPS 140-3: 5 Myths and Realities series, where we examine common misconceptions surrounding FIPS 140-3 and what organizations should understand before beginning the validation process.

Myth #5: “The Cost and Timeline of FIPS Validation Aren’t Justified.”

FIPS 140-3 validation requires an investment of time, resources, and budget. For some organizations, those costs can appear difficult to justify, especially when viewed only as a compliance requirement.

However, the more important question is “What is the cost of not addressing FIPS 140-3”

Reality: Validation Is an Investment in Market Access, Product Readiness, and Risk Reduction

FIPS 140-3 validation is not simply an administrative exercise. It provides independent assurance that a cryptographic module has been evaluated against the CMVP’s security requirements. For organizations selling into government and regulated environments, the absence of a validation can result in:

Exclusion from certain solicitations or procurement opportunities
Delayed customer deployments
Restrictions on where a product can be deployed
Lost opportunities to competition
Repeated customer-specific security reviews
Delayed entry into new government or regulated markets

When viewed through this lens, the investment in validation should be weighed against the opportunities it enables and the risks it helps mitigate.

Understanding the Real Timeline Risk

Another common misconception is that all FIPS validations require the same level of effort and follow the same path to validation.

In reality, organizations have several options depending on their product architecture, business objectives, and deployment requirements. These may include:

Full FIPS 140-3 validation
Private-labeling or Rebrands
Cryptographic Algorithm Validation Program (CAVP) testing
Entropy Source Validation (ESV)

Not all approaches are equal in scope, complexity, cost, or timeline.

Organizations sometimes postpone validation activities because they want to avoid investing resources before a customer explicitly requires FIPS validation. However, when FIPS requirements emerge late in the product lifecycle, engineering teams may need to revisit architectural decisions, modify cryptographic implementations, restructure documentation, or develop a separate product configuration for validation. These changes can disrupt development schedules that were never designed around certification requirements.

The result is often not only a larger validation budget, but a significantly larger product development budget. By evaluating validation options and requirements early, organizations can make more informed design decisions, minimize rework, and avoid costly schedule impacts later in the product lifecycle.

The Real Business Case for FIPS 140-3

The value of FIPS 140-3 extends far beyond the initial certification expense. A validated cryptographic module can support multiple customer engagements, procurement opportunities, and deployments without requiring organizations to repeatedly demonstrate cryptographic compliance from scratch.

For organizations targeting federal, defense, critical infrastructure, and other regulated markets, validation is often a prerequisite for doing business. In many cases, the question is not whether validation costs time and money, but whether the market access, revenue opportunities, and competitive advantages it enables justify the investment.

Organizations can also make the cost and timeline of FIPS 140-3 more predictable through early planning. Defining the validation scope, establishing the cryptographic boundary, identifying required algorithm validations, conducting readiness assessments, and integrating validation activities into the product roadmap can reduce rework, minimize delays, and improve project outcomes.

As FIPS 140-2 continues its transition out of active validation status, organizations developing new products should evaluate their long-term FIPS 140-3 strategy now rather than later. The earlier validation requirements are considered during product development, the easier it becomes to align certification objectives with engineering, business, and go-to-market goals.

A Strategic Approach to Validation

FIPS 140-3 validation requires time, resources, and investment. However, early planning can make the process more predictable and reduce costly surprises.

By incorporating validation into product development from the beginning, organizations can identify gaps earlier, minimize rework, better manage timelines, and align certification efforts with business objectives.

Ultimately, the right question is not simply, “How much will FIPS 140-3 cost?” but “What value will validation create for our product and market?”

For organizations that need FIPS validation to compete, the cost of not being validated may be significantly greater than the cost of validation itself.

The post Deconstructing FIPS 140-3: Myth #5 – FIPS Validation Isn’t Worth the Cost or Time appeared first on Corsec Security, Inc.®.

OPSWAT Completes FIPS 140-3 Validation

Jake Nelson — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 17:34:22 +0000

Corsec would like to congratulate our partner, OPSWAT, Inc., on completing the Federal Information Processing Standard Publication 140-3 (FIPS 140-3) validation process on their OPSWAT Cryptographic Module. Completion of the FIPS 140-3 validation process provides reassurance and confirmation to users of the protection of sensitive information within their environment.

To achieve this benchmark, OPSWAT partnered with Corsec, completing the validation at a Level 1 as seen in certificate #5225. For more information on the validation and to find additional details on the module’s security policy, visit NIST’s validated modules site.

To learn more about engineering your product to meet Federal and regulated industry security requirements, schedule time to speak to a Corsec engineer.

About FIPS 140

FIPS 140-2 / FIPS 140-3 are a joint effort by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the United States and the Communications Security Establishment Canada (CSEC), under the Canadian government. The Cryptographic Module Validation Program (CMVP), headed by NIST, provides module and algorithm testing for FIPS 140, which applies to Federal agencies using validated cryptographic modules to protect sensitive government data in computer and telecommunication systems. FIPS 140 provides stringent third-party assurance of security claims on any product containing cryptography that may be purchased by a government agency.

FIPS 140 is mandated by law in the U.S. and very strictly enforced in Canada. FIPS 140 has gained worldwide recognition as an important benchmark for third party validations of encryption products of all kinds. A FIPS 140 validation of a product provides end users with a high degree of product security, assurance, and dependability.

About OPSWAT and their Cryptographic Module

OPSWAT protects critical infrastructure. Their goal is to eliminate malware and zero-day attacks. They believe that every file and every device pose a threat. Threats must be addressed at all locations at all times—at entry, at exit, and at rest. Their products focus on threat prevention and process creation for secure data transfer and safe device access. The result is productive systems that minimize risk of compromise.

The OPSWAT Cryptographic Module is a cryptographic software library, intended for use by U.S. and Canadian Federal agencies and other markets that require FIPS 140-3 validated cryptographic functionality.

About Corsec Security, Inc.

For over 28 years, Corsec has assisted companies through the IT security certification process for FIPS 140-2 / FIPS 140-3, Common Criteria (CC), CSfC, and DoD STIG / DoDIN APL. We are a privately owned company focused on partnering with organizations worldwide to assist with the process of security certifications and validations. Our certification methodology helps open doors to new markets and increase revenue for clients with products ranging from mobile phones to satellites. Our broad knowledge safeguards against common pitfalls and thwarts delays, translating to a swift and seamless path to certification. Corsec has created the benchmark for providing business leaders with fast, flexible access to industry knowledge on security certifications and validations.