Top Five Government Contractor Cybersecurity Considerations For 2018

Cybersecurity was a major issue for government contractors last year, and remains a hot button topic for 2018.  Below we outline the most prominent considerations for the new year:

1. DFAR compliance

The hottest cyber topic last year remains front and center.  As of January 1, 2018, all Department of Defense (DoD) contractors that store, process, or transmit covered defense information (CDI) are subject to DFAR 252.204-7012.  The DFAR clause requires that contractors have implemented the NIST special publication 800-171 standards.  DoD has confirmed that this implementation means, at the very least, that the contractor has performed an assessment of its current security protocols versus the NIST 800-171 standards, has documented that analysis in a system security plan (SSP), and has a plan of actions and milestones (POAM) to address any gaps.