What is Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC)?

The US Department of Defense (DoD) launched the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification programme to assess the cybersecurity capabilities, preparedness, and expertise of its defence contractors. The framework is, at its most basic, a collection of procedures, other frameworks, and inputs from existing cybersecurity standards such as NIST, FAR, and DFARS.

The CMMC's main objective is to evaluate the maturity of a company's current cybersecurity initiatives. Whether the company is able to improve and enhance its security while simultaneously maintaining it is one aspect of this. Additionally, it covers the degree to which security measures are involved and whether a business manages security pro-actively or reactively.

Who needs CMMC Certification?

CMMC will apply to about 300,000 DoD supply chain contractors that manage Federal Contracting Information (FCI) or Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). It will have an impact on suppliers at all levels of the DIB, including prime contractors, SME contractors, and international suppliers. Certification is required for prime and subsidiary contractors who handle CUI on behalf of the government. In the Request for Proposals (RFP), the Department of Defense will specify the requisite CMMC level.

Why is CMMC important?

All contractors handling sensitive government data and information (i.e., CUI) were required to abide by the standards outlined in the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) Clause 252.204-7012, Safeguarding Covered Defense Information and Cyber Incident Reporting before the introduction of the CMMC. The NIST 800-171 cybersecurity measures were required to be followed, and the DIB could vouch for their compliance.

However, it was determined that the prior self-attestation strategy was insufficient to safeguard the defence supply chain from potential intellectual property theft and cybersecurity breaches. Cyber intrusions can jeopardise the economic and national security of the US and are expected to cost $57 billion annually.

In recent years, attackers have shown a fast rise in expertise and operational security skills. Ongoing, serious attacks are being made against the networks and systems of defence contractors. The CMMC was established to enhance the Defense Industrial Base's overall cybersecurity capabilities (DIB). It guarantees that, on behalf of the government, contractors have best practise procedures in place to safeguard sensitive information.

What are CMMC Certification Levels?

The CMMC certification has a total of five levels, in which Level 1 is the lowest, and Level 5, which is the highest.

• Level 1 - Basic Cyber Hygiene: Basic cybersecurity suitable for small enterprises (not all small businesses will come under Level 1). The RFI/RFP for the contract or subcontract work should include the level requirement.
• Level 2 - Intermediate Cyber Hygiene: Consists of NIST SP and CSF cybersecurity recommended practises that are broadly accepted.
• Level 3 - Good Cyber Hygiene: Covers all NIST 800-171 controls as well as extra CMMC parts.
• Level 4 - Proactive: Consists of sophisticated and advanced cybersecurity processes and controls.
• Level 5 - Advanced/Progressive: Contains extremely sophisticated cybersecurity standards and practises.

Benefits of CMMC

The following are some of the benefits of becoming CMMC certified:

• Risk reduction against a certain set of cyber risks by implementing cybersecurity standards, best practises, controls, and processes at various maturity levels ranging from basic cyber hygiene to advanced.
• Enhancing the trust-based existing regulations (DFARS 252.204-7012) by including a verification element for the cybersecurity standards.
• Small businesses can implement lower CMMC levels in a cost-effective and reasonable manner.

The CMMC's ultimate purpose is to deploy an acceptable level of cybersecurity across the defence industrial base's supply chain (DIB). The CMMC was primarily created to support businesses in risk management, counter cyber-attacks, and locate vulnerabilities. The CMMC concept is based on reliable cybersecurity procedures that lots of people may utilise as a framework for proactively incident management.

Author:

Sonali Thakur 

RiskPro India Ventures Private Limited