Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) is now an essential requirement for contractors engaging with the United States Department of Defense. This directive calls for an overhaul of an organization’s system to meet the government's cybersecurity standards across the entire defense industrial space. Assessing gaps in your system, continued monitoring and understanding the CMMC levels are crucial to preparing for the certifications. Here is a breakdown of how to position your organization for CMMC certification.
Understand the CMMC levels
It is important to note that the criticality of the data you manage determines CMMC levels. Understanding your level is the basis part when coming up with a CMMC compliance checklist. To attain the certification, you will need to know the level that matches the type of data you will handle. Here are the key levels to take note of:
Level 1- Foundational
Contractors under this level need to meet the compliance for 17 controls as provided by the National Institute of Standard and Technology (NIST) Special Publication.
Level 2- Advanced
The level complies with the foundation 17 controls and an additional 93 practices from NIST 800-171.
Level 3- Expert
The contractor needs to meet the requirements for all the 110 controls. However, there are additional practices to comply with are yet to be specified.
Continued Monitoring
Compliance is an ongoing affair, and organizations should always stay on their toes by ensuring all-around monitoring of the management of tools, policies, and procedures. To attain continued monitoring, ensure there is a plan and guideline on remedying issues that might arise. Additionally, the monitoring should also focus on auditing and collecting evidence to support your compliance status. The assessment should be conducted yearly, bearing in mind the compliance might differ depending on the sector. The monitoring should center around the following areas:
- Data records storage
- Data backups
- Implementation and maintenance of security controls
- Emergency and incident response
- Cyber hygiene training of employees
- Remote worker security procedures
- Cybersecurity tools
Assess Gaps
Certifications centers around meeting all the requirements. An organization should prove that its CMMC system is bulletproof. Generally, carrying out gap analysis gauges an organization's compliance and assesses controls' effectiveness. The gap analysis centers around an organization's NIST 800-171 Basic Assessment. The gap analysis can be automated, repeatable, and evidence-driven to save time and achieve effectiveness. Bear in mind that the certification will remain valid for three years, and having an ongoing process means you will be ready. Take note that CMMC compliance comes with several maturity levels that vary.
Design a System Security Plan (SSP)
SPP refers to a catalog of documents you need to comply with that presents the best picture of your organization's operating environment. However, you need to understand where your organization stands regarding the DOD requirements. The SSP should highlight the required best practices and how they will be implemented.
Keep Tabs With Stakeholders
You will need to partner with stakeholders like an accreditation body. Relevant third-party body organizations might be a perfect resource center to stay updated with the latest development. However, if your organization cannot keep up with the CMMC procedures, you can partner with a cybersecurity company. The company should be able to complete a formal CMMC gap analysis and provide specific recommendations on how to meet CMMC compliance requirements.
Endnote
Becoming CMMC compliant is not an easy journey considering the complexity of the technology involved. Organizations need to understand what is required of them by spending more time knowing their environment. The best approach is to implement a repeatable and evidence-driven compliance process.
