CPCSC Level 2 Control

Last updated June 25, 2026

03.03.03Audit and accountability

CPCSC Level 2 03.03.03: Audit Record Generation

Apply audit record generation to produce reliable logs and review routines that show what happened in the environment for CPCSC Level 2 readiness. This guide separates the official ITSP.10.171 control language from practical implementation, evidence, auditor questions, and related controls.

Open Level 2 Guide Browse Level 2 Controls

Formal Control Language

Official ITSP.10.171 wording for 03.03.03. Use the Cyber Centre publication and contract requirements as the source of truth for certification, assessment, or procurement submissions.

  • Generate audit records for the selected event types and audit record content specified in Event logging 03.03.01 and Audit record content 03.03.02
  • Retain audit records for a time period consistent with records retention policy

Contains information sourced from Government of Canada material used under the Open Government Licence - Canada.

What This Means In Plain English

Audit Record Generation is part of the CPCSC Level 2 Audit and accountability family. This is about keeping logs that are useful enough to reconstruct security-relevant activity and reviewed often enough to catch issues.

For a founder, CISO, engineer, or compliance owner, the practical question is whether audit record generation is visible in real operating evidence: a setting, workflow, ticket, log, approval, review, or exception record that can survive an external assessment.

Level 2 is different from Level 1 because the evidence has to survive an external assessment. A policy statement helps, but the stronger answer is a record that shows who did the work, when it ran, what system setting or workflow enforced it, and how exceptions were handled.

How To Implement It

1

Define the in-scope systems, owners, users, vendors, and data flows affected by audit record generation.

2

Define events to log, centralize logs where possible, synchronize time, protect logs from tampering, and document alert or review workflows.

3

Translate the formal requirement into one or two operating procedures: who performs it, how often, where it is recorded, and who approves exceptions.

4

Configure the relevant systems so the control is enforced by identity, endpoint, cloud, network, ticketing, monitoring, vendor, or documentation workflows rather than memory.

5

Keep evidence in a consistent folder, GRC system, ticket queue, or audit workspace so an assessor can trace the control from requirement to implementation to review.

Evidence Normally Gathered

Audit Record Generation: logging standard.

Audit Record Generation: SIEM or log dashboard screenshots.

Audit Record Generation: event source inventory.

Audit Record Generation: log review tickets.

Audit Record Generation: time synchronization settings.

Audit Record Generation: log retention settings.

Audit Record Generation: owner assignment and review cadence.

Audit Record Generation: exception, remediation, or POA&M records when the control is not fully implemented.

Common Auditor Questions

Where is audit record generation implemented in the in-scope environment?

Who owns audit record generation, and how do they know it is operating?

Show the evidence that proves audit record generation ran during the assessment period.

What happens when audit record generation fails, is bypassed, or has an exception?

How does this control connect to the system security plan, risk register, POA&M, and related CPCSC controls?

Sources

Source and attribution.

Formal control language is sourced from the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security ITSP.10.171 publication. CPCSC Level 2 assessment context references the Government of Canada CPCSC program overview and ITSP.10.171-01 assessment guidance.

CPCSC Program OverviewITSP.10.171ITSP.10.171-01Open Government Licence - Canada