CMMC
Compliance
The CMMC Deadline Isn't Coming. It's Here.
CMMC requirements started appearing in DoD contracts on November 10, 2025. Phase 2 begins November 2026, when third-party C3PAO assessments become mandatory for the majority of Level 2 contractors.
Only 0.5% of the Defense Industrial Base has achieved Level 2 certification. Under 800 certified assessors exist for 80,000+ contractors that need certification. C3PAOs in major defense corridors are already booking into late 2026 and 2027.
If you haven't started, the window is narrowing. If you've started and you're stuck, we can help you get unstuck.
SSO helps defense contractors and subcontractors get assessor-ready for CMMC Level 1 and Level 2 certification.
The Math Doesn't Work in Your Favor
Certification typically takes 9 to 12 months from gap analysis through assessment readiness. The assessor pool is already undersized and overbooked. Assessment costs are projected to rise significantly as demand outstrips supply through late 2026.
Contractors who start their gap analysis in Q2 2026 are already outside the realistic window for Phase 2 compliance before contract renewal pressure hits.
This isn't about checking a box. If you handle CUI and you can't demonstrate CMMC compliance, you can't bid on new contracts and you risk losing existing ones. Prime contractors are already auditing their supply chains to identify CMMC-ready suppliers. Being ready early isn't just compliance. It's competitive advantage.
What We Do
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We're not a C3PAO. We don't conduct the official assessment. What we do is everything that needs to happen before the assessor walks in the door.
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We evaluate your current security posture against the 110 controls that CMMC Level 2 requires. You get a clear picture of where you stand, what's missing, and what needs to happen to close the gaps. We use Cynomi and Cavelo alongside our own assessment processes to make this faster and more thorough than traditional consulting.
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Poor scoping is one of the most common reasons assessments fail. We help you define exactly where CUI lives in your environment so the assessment scope is accurate and nothing gets missed. Tighter scoping also reduces your compliance surface area, which can significantly lower costs.
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We don't just hand you a list of findings and wish you luck. We implement the controls. Access management, encryption, monitoring, incident response planning, documentation. The technical security work that produces the evidence assessors need to see.
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Assessors want evidence. Policies, procedures, system security plans, configuration baselines, training records. If it's not documented, it doesn't exist in the eyes of an assessor. We build and organize your evidence package so nothing is missing when the C3PAO arrives.
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Before you book your C3PAO, we run you through a readiness review using the same criteria assessors use. This catches anything that would cause a finding before it becomes one. You go into your official assessment confident, not hoping.
We Didn't Learn Cybersecurity From a Textbook.
SSO was founded by a father-son team from the U.S. Intelligence Community. We built and defended the kinds of systems that CMMC was designed to protect. That background means we don't just understand the controls on paper. We understand why they exist, how they work in practice, and what assessors are actually looking for when they evaluate your environment.
We also handle the full stack. Most compliance consultants will assess your gaps and hand you recommendations. SSO assesses, recommends, AND implements. You don't need to hire a separate IT firm to execute the remediation plan. We do the security work ourselves because that's how we started.
For defense contractors and subcontractors who also need ongoing security leadership, our V-CISO service integrates naturally with CMMC compliance. Strategic security oversight, continuous compliance management, and board-level reporting from the same team that prepared you for certification.
Who This Is For
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is for contractors handling only Federal Contract Information (FCI). 17 controls. Annual self-assessment. We help you verify your compliance and submit your SPRS score with confidence.
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is for contractors and subcontractors handling Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). 110 controls mapped to NIST SP 800-171. Third-party C3PAO assessment required for most CUI-related contracts starting Phase 2. This is where the majority of defense contractors need to be, and where SSO focuses most of our CMMC work.
If you're a prime contractor, a subcontractor, or anywhere in the defense supply chain handling CUI, and you need to be assessor-ready before your next contract renewal, this is what we built for.
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No. We're not the assessors. We're the team that gets you ready for the assessors. Think of it like preparing for an audit: we make sure everything is in order before the auditor arrives so there are no surprises. When you're ready, you book a C3PAO independently for your official assessment.
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For most organizations starting from a moderate baseline, 9 to 12 months from gap analysis through assessment readiness. If you've already been working toward NIST 800-171 compliance, the timeline can be shorter. If you're starting from scratch, it may be longer. The key variable is how many of the 110 controls you already have in place versus how many need to be implemented.
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We use Cynomi for AI-powered security assessments and policy generation, and Cavelo for data discovery and CUI identification. These tools accelerate the process significantly compared to traditional manual consulting, meaning you get faster results without cutting corners on thoroughness.
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CMMC Level 2 maps directly to the 110 security controls in NIST SP 800-171. The difference is verification. Before CMMC, contractors self-attested their compliance. CMMC requires third-party assessment for most CUI-handling contracts. The controls are the same. The accountability is new.
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If your contract involves handling CUI, yes. CMMC flows down through the supply chain. Prime contractors are required to ensure their subcontractors meet the required CMMC level. We're already seeing primes audit their sub-tier suppliers to avoid having a weak link put their own contracts at risk. Being CMMC-ready as a small sub makes you more valuable to primes, not less.
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No. CMMC preparation is delivered entirely remotely. We work with defense contractors and subcontractors nationwide.