Oklahoma Counties, Oklahoma Municipalities & Sheriffs Guide
CJIS compliance is often treated as a “law enforcement problem.”
In reality, CJIS is an access-based security standard, and as agencies move into 2026 under CJIS Security Policy version 6.0, misunderstandings around who it applies to, and what is required, are becoming a real operational risk for cities, counties, and vendors.
If your organization supports law enforcement in any way through technology, communications, records, or infrastructure, CJIS likely applies to you.
What CJIS Is Really About
The FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Security Policy exists to protect Criminal Justice Information (CJI) data tied to criminal investigations, arrests, court proceedings, incarceration, and other justice system activities.
CJIS does not care about job titles or department names.
It cares about access.
If an organization or individual can access, manage, store, transmit, or support systems containing CJI, CJIS security requirements apply, whether that access is direct or indirect.
Who CJIS Applies To (And Why Many Organizations Miss It)
CJIS unquestionably applies to law enforcement agencies such as sheriff’s offices, police departments, state patrols, prosecutors, courts, jails, probation offices, and 911 dispatch centers.
What’s often overlooked is that CJIS also applies to supporting government departments. County and city IT teams, emergency management offices, clerks, records departments, and administrative staff may fall under CJIS if they administer systems or have visibility into justice-related data.
CJIS also extends to private vendors and contractors. Managed IT providers, VoIP and phone system providers, cloud platforms, backup services, software vendors, and even network installers fall under CJIS when they have remote access, administrative credentials, monitoring tools, or backups tied to CJI.
A common misconception is that CJIS only applies if someone actively views criminal records. In reality, the ability to access the system is enough. Infrastructure access, admin privileges, and after-hours support all count.
CJIS Applies to People, Not Just Organizations
CJIS compliance is enforced at the individual level as well as the organizational level.
Anyone with access to CJI must meet CJIS requirements, including background screening, security awareness training, and strict authentication and access controls. This includes officers, dispatchers, clerks, IT administrators, MSP technicians, and on-call support staff.
What Counts as Criminal Justice Information
Criminal Justice Information includes criminal history records, arrest and warrant data, fingerprints, mugshots, jail and inmate records, dispatch logs, 911 call recordings tied to investigations, and court records associated with criminal cases.
If the data identifies a person in connection with the criminal justice system, it should be treated as CJI.
CJIS Version 6.0: A Major Expansion, Not Just a Tune-Up
CJIS Security Policy version 6.0 became effective on December 27, 2024, following version 5.9.5. While version 6.0 builds conceptually on earlier policy versions, it represents a substantial expansion of CJIS requirements, not a minor refresh.
Version 6.0 introduces over 180 primary security controls and more than 1,300 supporting subcontrols, significantly increasing both the depth and specificity of CJIS compliance expectations. The intent is clear: CJIS is moving away from loosely interpreted standards and toward measurable, enforceable controls that reflect modern cybersecurity threats.
For agencies and vendors, this means more than having policies on paper. It means being able to demonstrate consistent enforcement across systems, users, and third parties.
The MFA Update You Probably Didn’t Know About
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a good example of how CJIS expectations have evolved.
MFA was first introduced into CJIS requirements under version 5.9.2 in December 2022, with an enforcement deadline of October 1, 2024. By that date, MFA became mandatory for all agencies accessing CJI.
Version 6.0 did not introduce MFA, but it strengthened and clarified how MFA must be implemented and enforced. Auditors are now focused on consistency: no shared accounts, no undocumented exceptions, and no partial deployments.
In practice, MFA is no longer a checkbox item. It is a baseline control that must be correctly implemented, actively managed, and provable during an audit.
What CJIS 6.0 Emphasizes Moving Into 2026
Version 6.0 places greater scrutiny on identity management, remote access, and cloud-hosted environments. As agencies rely more heavily on third-party vendors and remote support, CJIS makes it clear that accountability does not transfer. Agencies remain responsible for vendor access and security posture.
Documentation, logging, and access review also carry more weight than ever. Policies must align with real-world behavior. Access must be justified and reviewed. Audit logs must exist and be usable.
In short, intent is no longer enough. Proof is required.
The Real Risk of Getting CJIS Wrong
CJIS non-compliance can result in failed audits, loss of CJIS system access, forced shutdowns, and operational disruption that directly impacts public safety.
Many agencies believed they were compliant until auditors examined vendor access, MFA enforcement, or access logs and discovered gaps that had gone unaddressed for years.
How Diverse CTI Helps Agencies Navigate CJIS 6.0
CJIS compliance lives at the intersection of technology, policy, and people.
Diverse CTI helps agencies and vendors design CJIS-compliant environments, secure networks and remote access, enforce authentication requirements, manage vendor access responsibly, and prepare for CJIS audits under Policy 6.0—without disrupting daily public safety operations.
We protect the systems so agencies can focus on protecting the community.
What a CJIS-Compliant Cybersecurity Assessment Really Looks Like
Understanding CJIS requirements is only the first step.
The real question is whether your current environment meets them.
CJIS-compliant environments require layered cybersecurity, identity controls, access enforcement, logging, vendor oversight, and continuous monitoring. A single missing control, misconfigured firewall, or overlooked vendor account can put an entire agency at risk.
That’s why many agencies and vendors start with an independent cybersecurity assessment.
We’ve put together a clear, plain-English guide that walks through:
- What a modern cybersecurity assessment evaluates
- Where CJIS-related gaps are most commonly found
- Why internal IT teams often can’t see their own blind spots
- How assessments support CJIS, HIPAA, SOC, and FTC compliance
- What auditors, insurers, and regulators expect to see
Fill out the information below to access the guide.
Why Agencies Choose an Independent Assessment
CJIS compliance isn’t just about having policies—it’s about proving enforcement.
An independent cybersecurity assessment helps CJIS-regulated organizations:
- Identify hidden risks before auditors do
- Validate MFA, access controls, and vendor permissions
- Strengthen documentation and audit readiness
- Reduce operational and legal risk tied to public safety systems
We protect the systems so agencies can focus on protecting the community. If your organization supports law enforcement, CJIS likely applies. 2026 is not the year to discover gaps during an audit.
