The accreditation body behind the Pentagon's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program has approved the first content created by a third-party partner publisher that will be used to teach assessors as part of the CMMC official assessor training program.
The content created by Edwards Performance Solutions, a consulting firm and training provider, will be used by training partners authorized by the CMMC Accreditation Body who are offering courses to prospective assessors. The CMMC program requires defense contractors to undergo a third-party cybersecurity certification assessment to compete for contracts and will be a requirement in DOD contracts by the end of fiscal year 2025.
CMMC-AB training lead Melanie Kyle Gingrich provided an update on her organization's efforts to stand up the official training program at a CMMC "Town Hall" on Tuesday. The course content is for the first level of CMMC assessor training to become a "Certified CMMC Professional (CCP)," and Gingrich said the courses for CMMC level one and three assessors are still in development.
Gingrich said there are "several" licensed partner publishers whose content will be approved this week or next. The LPPs are working with their licensed training providers to plan content and run courses, she said.
There are currently 114 provisional assessors in the CMMC-AB marketplace who will be able to conduct assessments through an authorized certified third-party assessment organization once DOD and the CMMC-AB clear the final hurdles.
Gingrich said the CMMC-AB is currently working on a free online gap course that provisional assessors will need to take to become official assessors.
At the Tuesday meeting, CMMC-AB CEO Matthew Travis provided a review of nine allegations against board members for "conflict-of-interest and ethics violations" and investigations of those allegations by two third-party firms, CBIZ and Pillsbury.
Travis also moderated a conversation with Dan Ciarlette and Carly Logan of Boston Government Services who spoke about their experience going through a DOD audit for CMMC level three compliance and becoming an authorized certified third-party assessment organization.