You are viewing this page in an unauthorized frame window. This is a potential security issue, you are being redirected to https://csrc.nist.gov . An official website of the United States government Here’s how you know Here’s how you know Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( Lock Locked padlock icon ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Search Search CSRC MENU Search Search Projects Publications Expand or Collapse Drafts for Public Comment All Public Drafts Final Pubs FIPS (standards) Special Publications (SP s ) IR (interagency/internal reports) CSWP (cybersecurity white papers) ITL Bulletins Project Descriptions Journal Articles Conference Papers Books Topics Expand or Collapse Security & Privacy Applications Technologies Sectors Laws & Regulations Activities & Products News & Updates Events Glossary About CSRC Expand or Collapse Computer Security Division Cryptographic Technology Software Security Group Hardware Security Group Security Engineering and Risk Management Applied Cybersecurity Division Cybersecurity and Privacy Applications National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Contact Us Information Technology Laboratory Computer Security Resource Center Publications NIST SP 1800-36 Trusted Internet of Things (IoT) Device Network-Layer Onboarding and Lifecycle Management: Enhancing Internet Protocol-Based IoT Device and Network Security Share to Facebook Share to X Share to LinkedIn Share ia Email Documentation Topics Date Published: November 2025 Author(s) Michael Fagan (NIST) , Jeffrey Marron (NIST) , Murugiah Souppaya (NIST) , Paul Watrobski (NIST) , William Barker (Strativia) , Chelsea Deane (MITRE) , Joshua Klosterman (MITRE) , Blaine Mulugeta (MITRE) , Charlie Rearick (MITRE) , Susan Symington (MITRE) , Dan Harkins (Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company) , Danny Jump (Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company) , Andy Dolan (CableLabs) , Kyle Haefner (CableLabs) , Craig Pratt (CableLabs) , Darshak Thakore (CableLabs) , Peter Romness (Cisco) , Tyler Baker (Foundries.io) , David Griego (Foundries.io) , Brecht Wyseur (Kudelski IoT) , Nick Allott (NquiringMinds) , Alexandru Mereacre (NquiringMinds) , Ashley Setter (NquiringMinds) , Julien Delaplanke (NXP Semiconductors) , Michael Richardson (Sandelman Software Works) , Steve Clark (SEALSQ, a subsidiary of WISeKey) , Mike Dow (Silicon Labs) , Steve Egerter (Silicon Labs) , Karen Kent (Trusted Cyber Annex) Abstract Establishing trust between a network and an Internet of Things (IoT) device (as defined in NIST Internal Report 8425) prior to providing the device with the credentials it needs to join the network is crucial for mitigating the risk of potential attacks. There are two possibilities for attack. One happens when a device is convinced to join an unauthorized network, which would take control of the device. The other occurs when a network is infiltrated by a malicious device. Trust is achieved by attesting and verifying the identity and posture of the device and the network before providing the device with its network credentials—a process known as network-layer onboarding. In addition, scalable, automated mechanisms are needed to safely manage IoT devices throughout their lifecycles, such as safeguards that verify the security posture of a device before the device is permitted to execute certain operations. In this practice guide, the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) applies standards, best practices, and commercially available technology to demonstrate various mechanisms for trusted network-layer onboarding of IoT devices in Internet Protocol based environments. This guide shows how to provide network credentials to IoT devices in a trusted manner and maintain a secure device posture throughout the device lifecycle, thereby enhancing IoT security in alignment with the IoT Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2020. Establishing trust between a network and an Internet of Things (IoT) device (as defined in NIST Internal Report 8425) prior to providing the device with the credentials it needs to join the network is crucial for mitigating the risk of potential attacks. There are two possibilities for attack. One... See full abstract Establishing trust between a network and an Internet of Things (IoT) device (as defined in NIST Internal Report 8425) prior to providing the device with the credentials it needs to join the network is crucial for mitigating the risk of potential attacks. There are two possibilities for attack. One happens when a device is convinced to join an unauthorized network, which would take control of the device. The other occurs when a network is infiltrated by a malicious device. Trust is achieved by attesting and verifying the identity and posture of the device and the network before providing the device with its network credentials—a process known as network-layer onboarding. In addition, scalable, automated mechanisms are needed to safely manage IoT devices throughout their lifecycles, such as safeguards that verify the security posture of a device before the device is permitted to execute certain operations. In this practice guide, the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) applies standards, best practices, and commercially available technology to demonstrate various mechanisms for trusted network-layer onboarding of IoT devices in Internet Protocol based environments. This guide shows how to provide network credentials to IoT devices in a trusted manner and maintain a secure device posture throughout the device lifecycle, thereby enhancing IoT security in alignment with the IoT Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2020. Hide full abstract Keywords application-layer onboarding ; bootstrapping ; Internet of Things (IoT) ; Manufacturer Usage Description (MUD) ; network-layer onboarding ; onboarding ; Wi-Fi Easy Connect Control Families None selected Documentation Publication: https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.SP.1800-36 Download URL Supplemental Material: Project homepage Related NIST Publications: IR 8350 CSWP 42 Document History: 12/05/22: SP 1800-36 (Draft) 05/03/23: SP 1800-36 (Draft) 10/31/23: SP 1800-36 (Draft) 05/31/24: SP 1800-36 (Draft) 11/25/25: SP 1800-36 (Final) Topics Security and Privacy access authorization , access control , asset management , roots of trust Technologies networks Applications Internet of Things Laws and Regulations E-Government Act HEADQUARTERS 100 Bureau Drive Gaithersburg, MD 20899 X (link is external) facebook (link is external) linkedin (link is external) instagram (link is external) youtube (link is external) rss govdelivery (link is external) Want updates about CSRC and our publications? Subscribe Contact Us | Our Other Offices Send inquiries to [email protected] Site Privacy Accessibility Privacy Program Copyrights Vulnerability Disclosure No Fear Act Policy FOIA Environmental Policy Scientific Integrity Information Quality Standards Commerce.gov Science.gov USA.gov Vote.gov