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Application Security Standards
Free online event

The Pentagon Paused Its Cybersecurity Certification. Contractors Are Still Getting Sued.

In July 2026 the Pentagon paused the requirement for defense contractors to be certified by an outside assessor. But the cybersecurity scores contractors report themselves still count, and the Justice Department keeps settling cases over scores that were wrong. Whether to get assessed now or wait.

When Wednesday, April 7, 2027 at 11:00 AM EDTWhere OnlineCost Free

Why now

Paused on July 13, 2026

The requirement to hold a certification from an outside assessor, due to start in contracts on November 10, 2026, was suspended, and a 60-day task force was set up to review the program.

Assessments did not stop

Contractors can still choose to be assessed by an accredited outside firm. The pause was written into contracts by a formal Pentagon deviation dated September 3, 2026.

Honeywell: $2.04 million, September 2026

For NIST SP 800-171 gaps from April 2020 to December 2023. The whistleblower's share was $375,823.

A score of -170

LOGZONE paid $507,144 in June 2026 after the Pentagon's own auditors scored its security -170 on a scale that runs from -203 to 110.

What you will learn

1Exactly what is paused and what still binds you
2How a self-reported cybersecurity score becomes a False Claims Act case
3How to choose between an outside assessment now, a practice assessment and waiting
4Why your prime contractors may still demand certification

Agenda

10 minWhat the July 13 pause did, and what it didn't
15 minThe 2025 and 2026 False Claims Act cases
15 minGet assessed now or wait: cost, assessor capacity and pressure from primes
10 minWhat the task force could decide
10 minYour questions
60 minThe virtual expo hall opens: visit the sponsor booths

Who should attend

Defense contractors and subcontractors: compliance leads, CISOs, contracts managers and counsel.

Speakers

Speakers will be announced. The panel will include:

Government contracts and False Claims Act counsel
A former DOJ civil fraud attorney
A lead assessor from an accredited assessment firm
The CISO of a small defense contractor

Virtual expo hall

When the session ends, the expo hall opens for an hour. Step into a sponsor's booth in a new tab to watch their short session and pick up their resources, then come back to the main stage whenever you like.