AWS makes Higher Education Vendor Assessment Toolkit available

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has launched the Higher Education Community Vendor Assessment Toolkit (HECVAT) on AWS Artifact, a platform for customers to access compliance reports and relevant documentation. The toolkit, originally developed by EDUCAUSE and other industry groups, is designed to help higher education institutions assess the security and privacy postures of their technology vendors.

Higher education institutions face numerous compliance requirements, including protecting student records under FERPA and ensuring accessibility as per ADA standards. The HECVAT assists these institutions in evaluating vendors' ability to meet these and other critical standards, such as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

AWS is offering two versions of the toolkit: a Lite version with over 70 questions suitable for lower-risk workloads, and a Full version featuring over 250 questions designed for assessing the handling of sensitive data and support for critical workloads.

The HECVAT was a collaborative effort involving EDUCAUSE, the Shared Assessments working group, Internet2, and REN-ISAC, aiming to centralize vendor security and compliance information for ease of use by educational institutions.