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CYBERSECURITY

NEW CYBERSECURITY STANDARDS POST CHALLENGES FOR INDUSTRY

The Defense Department in late January released its highly anticipated new set of cybersecurity standards that companies must eventually adhere to if they want to do business with the Pentagon. But important issues have yet to be resolved, including how much it will cost contractors to comply. Read more.

PREPARING FOR CMMC? WHY COMPANIES SHOULD START NOW

It's a new year -- and a new cybersecurity regime for vendors working on defense contracts is coming.

The Defense Department has been steadily working on its new unified standard, the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC), and is expected to release a final version and a list of accrediting bodies in January. But while companies shouldn't wait until things are finalized to prep for certification, many are stuck. Keep reading.

DOD AIMS TO ISSUE PROPOSED RULE FOR CERTYING CONTRACTORS' CYBERSECURITY IN THE FALL

A sweeping plan to conduct independent third-party cybersecurity audits of prospective Defense Department contractors’ management of sensitive information will be subject to a formal rulemaking process, but the department and the nonprofit organization being established to train and approve certifiers are still moving at a quick clip. Keep reading.

CYBERSECURITY 'HAS TO BE IN YOUR DNA' TO FEND OFF HACKING THREATS

Small- to mid-sized businesses may not face the tens of thousands of daily cyber attacks directed at big corporations or governments, but that doesn’t mean that there aren't hackers happy to take a crack at your computer system to pry out trade secrets or customer or employee data you're trying to protect. Read more.

BETA.SAM NEWS

FEDERAL CONTRACT AWARD DATA FROM FPDS WILL BE ON SAM BEFORE SPRING

With the FedBizOpps transition done, the Federal Procurement Data System reporting tool—one of the main functions of the website—will be the next to migrate to GSA’s central contracting site. Learn more.

NEW FUNCTIONALITY ON THE WAY FOR FEDBIZOPPS REPLACEMENT

The transition from the standalone Federal Business Opportunities—better known as FedBizOpps or FBO—was a rough one for users of the federal contracting website. But program managers at the General Services Administration say they’re working through the problems and plan to launch new capabilities in the near future. Read more.

How is beta.sam.gov organized?

GSA ISSUES MASS MODIFICATION FOR CURRENT SCHEDULE CONTRACTORS

The GSA has begun issuing a Mass Modification (Mass Mod) to current Schedule contractors. The Mass Mod will update current contracts to conform with the terms and conditions of the new consolidated Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) that was released on Oct. 1, 2019. Contractors must accept this Mass Mod by July 31, 2020 - failure to do so will result in their offerings no longer being accessible on GSA eTools. Current contracts will be moved to GSA’s new single Schedule solicitation for products, services, and solutions after the Mass Mod is accepted. Read more.

SBREA FINAL RULE

SBA issues a final rule to modify its method for calculating annual average revenues.

On December 5, 2019, SBA issued a final rule changing its method for calculating the average annual receipts used to prescribe size standards for small businesses.

For all of SBA’s receipts-based size standards, and for other agencies’ proposed receipts-based size standards, SBA will calculate the average annual receipts using a 5-year averaging period (rather than the previous 3-year averaging period). This change is in accordance with the Small Business Runway Extension Act (SBREA) passed in December 2018. Read more from news release or the official Code of Federal Regulations.