Steel Root, Zscaler Partner to Help Contractors Get CMMC Approval

Cybersecurity services provider Steel Root has entered into a partnership agreement with Zscaler, a company that offers cloud-based security services, to assist defense contractors in preparing for the Cybersecurity Maturation Model Certification program.

According to Steel Root and Zscaler, in the next five years, about 300,000 companies within the defense industrial base will need to secure certification for the new cybersecurity standards so they can move forward with transacting with the Department of Defense.

Under the CMMC program, DOD contractors need to undergo assessments from third-party organizations authorized by the CMMC Accreditation Body.

All new contracts from the DOD will include requirements from the new cybersecurity standards. The Defense Department has begun incorporating CMMC requirements into select contracts as part of the program’s phased rollout, the two companies said.

Mike Nestor, managing partner at Steel Root, said his company is thrilled to work with Zscaler in helping contractors meet various CMMC requirements.

Nestor noted that Zscaler is a “disruptive force” in the field of cloud-based security, adding that the company has been named as the sole leader in the 2020 Gartner Magic Quadrant for secure web gateways.

Zscaler’s product is the only zero trust secure access solution that meets Steel Root clients’ compliance requirements, he added.

The cloud-based security company’s solutions support zero trust exchange, which Zscaler defines as a cloud-native platform designed to securely connect users, applications and devices over any network and at any location. 

Under zero trust exchange, the San Jose, California-headquartered company offers integrated solutions to enable secure internet and software-as-a-service access, secure private app access, secure apps and workloads and user-to-application experience management.