Proofpoint invests in FedRAMP High to advance human-centric security for federal agencies

Proofpoint is expanding its investment in FedRAMP High and Impact Level 4 (IL4) to further support U.S. Federal agencies and defense industrial base (DIB) organizations operating in the most critical environments. 

Proofpoint began its FedRAMP journey in 2016 to help government agencies securely collaborate as mission-critical workloads moved to the cloud. As adoption of FedRAMP-authorized services has grown by more than 60%, this investment reinforces our commitment to helping agencies strengthen security, meet evolving compliance requirements, and confidently operate in the cloud. 

Proofpoint’s continued investment in FedRAMP certification comes as federal CISOs operate at the intersection of accelerating cloud modernization and increasingly human-targeted cyber threats.  While infrastructure security has strengthened significantly, adversaries continue to bypass controls by exploiting people.   

Agencies must secure the people who operate critical systems and safeguard sensitive communications that underpin operational effectiveness. For people, email remains the primary initial attack vector across government agencies—through phishing, credential theft, business email compromise (BEC), and targeted social engineering campaigns. 

Proofpoint’s commitment to FedRAMP High & DoD IL4 supports the mission of federal agencies and the DIB against adversarial cyber threats threatening national security. It builds on our existing FedRAMP Moderate authorization for email protection and data loss prevention (DLP). Advancing to the FedRAMP High baseline represents the next phase of our long-term commitment to protecting U.S. federal agencies, Department of War, and DIB organizations operating in high-impact environments. 

Why Proofpoint’s investment in FedRAMP High & DoD IL4 matters now 

• Phishing continues to drive federal risk. 43% of social actions in public sector breaches were phishing. Email remains the primary initial attack vector across government networks. Threat actors consistently target federal personnel and defense organizations with phishing, credential harvesting, and BEC campaigns.  
• Mission-critical collaboration security. As adversaries increasingly target federal personnel to bypass traditional defenses, Proofpoint’s multilayered AI-powered detection stops 99.999% of threats including phishing, credential theft, and business email compromise threats aimed at sensitive government communications. 
• Defense cloud infrastructure readiness. Proofpoint is expanding its support with more solutions certified for customers operating in environments such as Azure Government Cloud, while planning for future CMMC requirements to help serve defense contractors and the broader defense industrial base. 
• Proven data security foundation. Building on its FedRAMP Moderate authorization for Email Protection and Email DLP, we're accelerating offerings toward the FedRAMP High & DoD IL4 baseline to support agencies such as the Department of War, intelligence community organizations, and federal law enforcement operating in high data security environments. Proofpoint intends to complete the FedRAMP High authorization process in 2027, subject to change. 

A proven FedRAMP moderate foundation 

By pursuing FedRAMP High & DoD IL4, Proofpoint is expanding its ability to support federal agencies and defense-related organizations that require the most stringent security controls under the federal compliance framework. 

Proofpoint’s FedRAMP strategy begins with a strong, established baseline. Our existing FedRAMP Moderate authorization covers Proofpoint Email Protection and Targeted Attack Protection (TAP), which focus on stopping phishing, business email compromise, and credential harvesting before users engage; and Proofpoint Enterprise Archive, which supports long-term data integrity, defensibility, FOIA, and eDiscovery requirements.  

Together, these capabilities help agencies reduce human risk, preserve trust in communications, and meet compliance requirements in cloud environments. Pursuing FedRAMP High and DoD IL4 builds directly on this Moderate authorization for email protection and email DLP—extending our compliance posture to meet High impact requirements and reinforcing our continued investment in federal civilian agencies, defense agencies, and the defense industrial base. 

As more agencies move high-impact workloads to the cloud, Proofpoint is positioned to deliver human-centric security protections to a wider segment of the federal government—helping safeguard personnel, sensitive communications, and mission-critical operations with the highest level of assurance. 

Learn more about how Proofpoint protects federal agencies.