Smithers Achieves Authorized C3PAO Status for CMMC Level 2 Certification!

Smithers has officially received authorized CMMC Third Party Assessor Organization (C3PAO) status from the Cyber Accreditation Body (Cyber-AB). This designation enables Smithers to provide third-party assessments and certifications for companies that require CMMC level 2 certification, as mandated by the Department of Defense (DoD).

The achievement follows a rigorous authorization process, which included a license agreement, organizational background checks, and an assessment by the Defense Industrial Base Cybersecurity Assessment Center (DIBCAC). To support this certification, Smithers has established a secure enclave to protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) during assessments, ensuring compliance with cybersecurity standards.

The CMMC rule, expected to be finalized by the end of 2024, mandates that defense contractors undergo third-party assessments based on the NIST SP 800-171r2 standard. This standard focuses on safeguarding CUI data.

Jeanette Preston, President of Smithers Quality Assessments Division, stated, “Achieving C3PAO status represents an important milestone for Smithers. Our experience over the last thirty years as an accredited third-party certification body will allow us to provide thorough assessments, high-touch client service, and critical insight into how clients are performing against requirements.”

In addition to CMMC assessments, Smithers also offers certifications against the ISO/IEC 27001 standard for Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) and ISO/IEC 27701 for information privacy.

Michael Hochschwender, CEO of Smithers, emphasized, “Cybersecurity assessment services are a natural fit for Smithers given our expertise in third-party conformity assessments. By providing reliable CMMC assessments, we are helping contractors maintain their valuable DoD contracts and protect against cybersecurity threats.”