How does DoD 5200.48 define CUI?

• A. CUI is information requiring no controls.
• B. CUI is classified information at Top Secret level.
• C. CUI is unclassified information requiring safeguarding or dissemination controls pursuant to law, regulation, and government-wide policies.
• D. CUI is information that can be freely shared with the public.

Answer: (C)

CUI is unclassified information that still requires safeguarding or dissemination controls under applicable law, regulation, and government-wide policies. This definition captures why such information isn’t classified, yet can’t be treated as freely shareable: it needs protective measures to prevent improper disclosure, while staying unclassified. DoD 5200.48 uses this standard to ensure consistent handling, marking, storage, and transmission of sensitive-but-unclassified material across the department. It isn’t Top Secret, it isn’t without controls, and it isn’t information that can be released to the public; rather, it sits in a protected space defined by legal and policy requirements.