The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) is a tiered cybersecurity program mandated by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). Contractors and vendors must adopt CMMC to protect sensitive defense data on their systems. In September 2025, the DoD published the final CMMC rule, formally integrating CMMC 2.0 into the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS). This rule takes effect on November 10, 2025. From that date, the DoD can include new contract clauses that make CMMC compliance a condition of award for contracts handling Federal Contract Information (FCI) or Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI).
Implementation will be phased in over three years. The DoD will gradually require self-assessments for Level 1 and some Level 2 contracts. Later, they’ll require third-party audits for more critical Level 2 work. The ability to certify and continuously comply with CMMC will become a requirement for DoD contract performance. Contractors and subcontractors that fail to achieve or maintain the required CMMC status during the three-year implementation window might find themselves ineligible for new awards or lose existing contracts. Proofpoint Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) simplifies the path to CMMC 2.0 compliance, delivering both strategic benefits and the technical controls needed to pass audits with confidence.
What is CMMC?
CMMC integrates established standards such as NIST SP 800-171 and FAR 52.204-21 to create a unified benchmark for cybersecurity maturity. By enforcing consistent cybersecurity practices and independent verification, CMMC is intended to strengthen the security and resilience of the entire defense supply chain. Under the updated CMMC 2.0 model, the original five levels have been streamlined into three: Foundational, Advanced, and Expert. This reduces complexity and aligns more closely with existing federal requirements. Levels 1 and 2 (Foundational and Advanced) largely rely on self-assessments with annual executive affirmation. Level 3 (Expert) requires a government or third-party assessment.
Why CMMC 2.0 compliance matters
- Cyber threat protection: Defense contractors face growing cyber risks. By enforcing strong security practices, CMMC helps prevent espionage, data theft, and sabotage.
- Supply chain trust: CMMC ensures consistent cybersecurity across all tiers of the DoD supply chain, building confidence that sensitive data is protected at every level.
- Competitive edge: Certified businesses stand out in contract bids. Compliance indicates security maturity—a key differentiator in defense procurement.
- Risk avoidance: Non-compliance can lead to fines, lost contracts, or disqualification from future DoD work. Investing in compliance is far less costly than facing a breach or audit failure.
- Operational resilience: Meeting CMMC 2.0 requirements strengthens cyber defenses and supports uninterrupted operations amid evolving threats.
How Proofpoint DSPM helps with CMMC compliance
By providing continuous visibility, risk assessment, and compliance automation across data environments, Proofpoint DSPM plays a central role in helping organizations meet CMMC 2.0 requirements, particularly at Level 2. Here's a summary of how DSPM supports several families of CMMC 2.0 controls, especially those focused on data governance, risk management, and configuration oversight:
Asset Management/Media Protection (MP)
- Automatically discovers and classifies CUI across environments
- Maintains a real-time inventory of sensitive data assets
- Prevents unmanaged or abandoned data stores from becoming compliance risks
Access Control (AC)
- For AC.L2-3.1.1 to AC.L2-3.1.22, identifies excessive permissions and misconfigurations across cloud and on-premises environments
- Flags least privilege violations and unauthorized access to CUI
- Helps enforce access boundaries by visualizing who has access to what data
Audit & Accountability (AU)
- Tracks and logs access to repositories of sensitive data
- Provides evidence of who accessed what, when, and how—supporting audit trails
- Integrates with reporting workflows for audit readiness
Identification & Authentication (IA)
- Detects identity misconfigurations (for example, accounts without multifactor authentication (MFA), inactive users)
- Flags risky identity setups that could lead to unauthorized access
- Supports IA.L2-3.5.x controls by ensuring proper credential hygiene
Configuration Management (CM)
- Continuously assesses the configurations of data repositories
- Flags misconfigured storage (for example, publicly accessible data buckets, unencrypted databases)
- Maps findings to CM.L2-3.4.x controls for secure system setup
Risk Assessment (RA)
- Assigns risk scores to data assets based on sensitivity and exposure
- Quantifies risks in business terms (for example, monetary value of data at risk)
- Enables prioritized remediation aligned with RA.L2-3.11.x controls
System & Communications Protection (SC)
- Evaluates encryption status of data at rest and in transit
- Flags missing cryptographic protections (for example, unencrypted S3 buckets)
- Supports SC.L2-3.13.x controls for secure data transmission and storage
Security Assessment (CA)
- Provides dashboards showing compliance status (pass or fail) across CMMC controls
- Tracks remediation progress and effectiveness of controls over time
- Supports CA.L2-3.12.x by documenting improvements and control maturity
Figure 1: Compliance dashboard shows pass or fail status for CMMC 2.0 and other standards across cloud accounts.
Conclusion
As the final CMMC 2.0 rule takes effect on November 10, 2025, defense contractors must act swiftly to align their cybersecurity postures with DoD expectations. The phased rollout offers a window of opportunity but also introduces new risks for organizations that delay compliance. Proofpoint DSPM empowers contractors to meet CMMC requirements with confidence, offering automated data classification, real-time control mapping, and audit-ready reporting. By integrating DSPM into their security strategies, organizations not only safeguard sensitive data but also secure their place in the defense supply chain for years to come.
Learn more
- For more information on CMMC, see here.
- For more information on Proofpoint DSPM, visit the product webpage.
