Emerging threats
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) recently introduced the Defence Cyber Certification (DCC) Scheme: a framework for suppliers in the defence supply chain. It is designed to ensure organisations have the appropriate security controls in place and can remain resilient against modern cyber threat.
Strengthening your position
While the scheme is still relatively new today, it is already being recognised as the new benchmark for organisations in the defence sector looking to demonstrate strong cybersecurity posture and secure defence contracts. A DCC certification offers suppliers the opportunity to differentiate themselves from competitors and strengthen their position when bidding for contracts.
External validation of security controls
Unlike a Supplier Assurance Questionnaire (SAQ), which is effectively a self-declaration that you have certain controls in place, DCC provides independent third-party validation of your security posture, and that your controls are aligned with MoD standards. In a competitive market, this strengthens your credibility, and signals to clients and contractors that you meet a higher standard of defence supply chain security. The even better news is that a DCC certification is valid for three years and removes the need to complete a SAQ for every new bid, reducing administrative burden.
DCC is specifically designed for the defence sector, providing clearly defined and practical security controls aligned to MoD expectations. This helps organisations move beyond general cyber security frameworks (building on Cyber Essentials as a pre-requisite) and understand exactly what is required to meet defence supply chain requirements.
Demonstrating resilience
In addition to demonstrating compliance and core cybersecurity controls, a DCC certification helps answer a fundamental question for contractors: whether an organisation can continue to operate in the event of a cyber incident or disruption. A key element of the scheme is centred around incident response capabilities and business continuity planning, with organisations being required to evidence the processes they have implemented in order to maintain operations in a crisis and recover effectively from cyber incidents.
The future of the DCC scheme
The DCC scheme is expected by experts to become mandatory as it becomes more widely adopted, and those who achieve certification early will be better positioned, standing ahead of competitors when bidding for contracts. Ultimately, Defence Cyber Certification (DCC) Scheme can be the difference between winning and retaining defence contracts, or missing opportunities all together. Learn more about how the DCC scheme works.
Get in touch with our team today to find out how we can support you with DCC certification.
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