“That process, known as the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification, has undergone many evolutions since it was formally introduced in early 2020 and is, in fact, still evolving. However, at its core, CMMC is designed to ensure that defense contractors are all meeting at least a basic level of cybersecurity hygiene for protecting sensitive defense information…”
“Michael Cardaci, CEO of FedHive, a Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program-certified cloud service offering that provides security compliance solutions, says the key to the CMMC is in the name, in that it follows a maturity model.
‘The idea behind it is the embodiment of security, as opposed to just kind of checking off a list of things that you make sure you do, like change your password and that sort of thing,’ he says. ‘I view it as more of an immersive kind of thing.’…”
“Cardaci recommends that contractors familiarize themselves with the requirements for the CMMC, starting at level 1 and working upward. He emphasizes that organizations should not think of the CMMC as a one-time check, since in order to maintain compliance, organizations will need to be thinking about cybersecurity ‘as part of your operational function going forward.’
In general, the DOD says a CMMC certification will be valid for three years.
‘Compliance isn’t security,’ [William “Tony” Bai, director and federal practice lead at A-LIGN, a cybersecurity and compliance firm] says, ‘but compliance is a way to document what you’ve done to secure things.’…” Read the full article here.
Source: What Is the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification and How Can It Be Achieved? – By Phil Goldstein, August 3, 2021. FedTech Magazine.
