Cybersecurity guidelines constantly evolve, creating a shifting landscape that federal contractors working with the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) must adhere to. The latest change came in May when the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) updated guidance for protecting controlled unclassified information (CUI) via Special Publication 800-171, Revision 3.
This particular guideline is at the crux of the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) 2.0 program. Attendees of CMMC CON 2023 have the opportunity to gain inside access and hear from one of NIST 800-171’s authors, Dr. Ron Ross. Registration is still open for the free, one-day virtual conference on Sept. 27, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. EDT.
“Many of the newly added requirements specifically address threats to CUI, which recently has been a target of state-level espionage,” Dr. Ross said via the NIST website. “We want to implement and maintain state-of-the-practice defenses because the threat space is changing constantly. We tried to express those requirements in a way that shows contractors what we do and why in federal cybersecurity. There’s more useful detail now with less ambiguity.”
Dr. Ross has served as a Computer Scientist and Fellow at NIST for more than 25 years. He leads the Joint Task Force Transformation Initiative, an interagency working group that develops the unified information security framework for the federal government and its contractors. He was inducted into the Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) Hall of Fame in 2009 and the National Cyber Security Hall of Fame in 2015. He holds a master’s degree and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School.
In an interview conducted by CyberSheath CEO Eric Noonan, Dr. Ross will explain how NIST 800-171 came to be, why it’s important, and what contractors need to know about the latest revision. Register now for CMMC CON 2023.