Although National Institute of Technology (NIST) 800-53 is a very good set of directives for federal agencies to follow, the standard is still at its infancy; therefore, it presents many weaknesses that must be addressed that would make better ensure the information assurance of the US Government’s critical information systems. This report will highlight many of these weaknesses, and how the lack of flexibility and flexibility in this standard leads to more insecurity of information systems. To remediate these issues, NIST 800-53 must focus more on utilizing a knowledge management model such as the Organizational Cognition Spiral along with the Organizational Knowledge Network in order to use better managerial and organizational cognition to increase the security posture of all information systems within an organization.