The Compliance Clock Is Ticking: How to Handle CMMC’s Y2K Moment
Forbes got it right: CMMC is America’s Y2K Moment. What’s new is that it is no longer just about cleaning up the code before midnight-it is demonstrating cyber resilience ahead of being shut out of opportunity. By October, defense contractors will confront a binary moment: certified and able to bid on bids with cybersecurity requirements, or out of the game. As of now, 270 organizations even have Level 2 certification, but roughly 80,000 of them will need it. That’s a huge gap and time is running out.
From Policy to Procurement
The White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) approved the DoD’s acquisition rule (Title 48) on Aug. 25, 2025, which will bake CMMC into contracts. That was the last way stop before being published in the Federal Register. The game just changed for contractors and their supply chain partners (including subs): CMMC certification isn’t a nice-to-have anymore. You need it to win contracts. The time to get your compliance house in order isn’t “someday”, it’s right now.
A Perfect Score in Reality
Sierra Space achieved CMMC Level 2 after receiving a perfect score of 110 out of 110 controls. They didn’t simply check the boxes on a policy: they made compliance part of their daily operations. The driving force behind labeling, classification and preventing leaks was Microsoft Purview. eSHARE brought the trust controls: secure link sharing (not a mess of files), no random guest accounts, and a clear audit trial for every action. The outcome? An evidence pack that auditors could feel confident in, one they could easily verify. That’s the gap between policy ink and policy proof.
Why 270 Matters
The early adopters have a massive lead. Currently, only about 270 companies are certified to Level 2, meaning they’re free to pursue new contracts while the rest clean up their act. Each month you wait is a month of missed opportunities or lost business you already have. Compliance is not a box to check: it’s what makes you, you. Unlike previous policies, CMMC will not be about paperwork and being checked off a list; it will be about actual evidence, Cagle said. That’s where many companies are going to have difficulty.
The Readiness Blueprint
Based on the hands-on work we’ve done-working with Sierra Space among other companies—we have created a qualified, practical guide for you to get prepared faster and have the proof auditors are seeking:
⓵ Contain the data. Anchor sharing for Microsoft 365 GCC High. eSHARE governed links replaces unsafe attachments so your Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) never leaves your tenant.
⓶ Classify what matters. Utilize Purview Information Protection to enforce a minimalistic, standardised taxonomy with help of trained classifiers and ensure accuracy at scale.
⓷ Enforce at the edge. Enable Purview DLP end-to-end workloads and endpoints, prevent spillage and send external collaboration via governed links.
⓸ Deny implicit trust. Chase wide guest access with identity-verified, time-bound link based access—least privilege by default.
⓹ Prove everything. Integrate Purview Audit and eSHARE’s immutable logs to produce evidence mapped to NIST 800-171 control families.
⓺ Secure the supply chain. Keep collaboration within your tenant to prevent inheriting partner lapses in security.
⓻ Operationalize compliance. Watch constantly with dashboards; fix any drift before it becomes audit failure. This isn’t just theory. It’s a battle-tested, real-world game plan that will make you go from guesswork to certified faster.
The Next Step
CMMC’s October deadline isn’t moving. Neither are contract opportunities. The companies that make their move today will be the ones to stick around-the ones who don’t are going to find themselves on the bench.
- Read the announcement: Sierra Space Achieves Perfect CMMC Level 2 Score with eSHARE as Strategic Partner
- Download the blueprint: The State of CMMC Compliance in 2025
- Schedule a demo: we'll map your exiting Purview implementation to CMMC controls and create your sprint plan
Forbes got it right: CMMC is America’s Y2K Moment. What’s new is that it is no longer just about cleaning up the code before midnight-it is demonstrating cyber resilience ahead of being shut out of opportunity. By October, defense contractors will confront a binary moment: certified and able to bid on bids with cybersecurity requirements, or out of the game. As of now, 270 organizations even have Level 2 certification, but roughly 80,000 of them will need it. That’s a huge gap and time is running out.
From Policy to Procurement
The White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) approved the DoD’s acquisition rule (Title 48) on Aug. 25, 2025, which will bake CMMC into contracts. That was the last way stop before being published in the Federal Register. The game just changed for contractors and their supply chain partners (including subs): CMMC certification isn’t a nice-to-have anymore. You need it to win contracts. The time to get your compliance house in order isn’t “someday”, it’s right now.
A Perfect Score in Reality
Sierra Space achieved CMMC Level 2 after receiving a perfect score of 110 out of 110 controls. They didn’t simply check the boxes on a policy: they made compliance part of their daily operations. The driving force behind labeling, classification and preventing leaks was Microsoft Purview. eSHARE brought the trust controls: secure link sharing (not a mess of files), no random guest accounts, and a clear audit trial for every action. The outcome? An evidence pack that auditors could feel confident in, one they could easily verify. That’s the gap between policy ink and policy proof.
Why 270 Matters
The early adopters have a massive lead. Currently, only about 270 companies are certified to Level 2, meaning they’re free to pursue new contracts while the rest clean up their act. Each month you wait is a month of missed opportunities or lost business you already have. Compliance is not a box to check: it’s what makes you, you. Unlike previous policies, CMMC will not be about paperwork and being checked off a list; it will be about actual evidence, Cagle said. That’s where many companies are going to have difficulty.
The Readiness Blueprint
Based on the hands-on work we’ve done-working with Sierra Space among other companies—we have created a qualified, practical guide for you to get prepared faster and have the proof auditors are seeking:
⓵ Contain the data. Anchor sharing for Microsoft 365 GCC High. eSHARE governed links replaces unsafe attachments so your Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) never leaves your tenant.
⓶ Classify what matters. Utilize Purview Information Protection to enforce a minimalistic, standardised taxonomy with help of trained classifiers and ensure accuracy at scale.
⓷ Enforce at the edge. Enable Purview DLP end-to-end workloads and endpoints, prevent spillage and send external collaboration via governed links.
⓸ Deny implicit trust. Chase wide guest access with identity-verified, time-bound link based access—least privilege by default.
⓹ Prove everything. Integrate Purview Audit and eSHARE’s immutable logs to produce evidence mapped to NIST 800-171 control families.
⓺ Secure the supply chain. Keep collaboration within your tenant to prevent inheriting partner lapses in security.
⓻ Operationalize compliance. Watch constantly with dashboards; fix any drift before it becomes audit failure. This isn’t just theory. It’s a battle-tested, real-world game plan that will make you go from guesswork to certified faster.
The Next Step
CMMC’s October deadline isn’t moving. Neither are contract opportunities. The companies that make their move today will be the ones to stick around-the ones who don’t are going to find themselves on the bench.
- Read the announcement: Sierra Space Achieves Perfect CMMC Level 2 Score with eSHARE as Strategic Partner
- Download the blueprint: The State of CMMC Compliance in 2025
- Schedule a demo: we'll map your exiting Purview implementation to CMMC controls and create your sprint plan
FAQ
How can CIOs ensure compliance and audit readiness in Microsoft 365?
Balancing collaboration speed with strong governance is the top challenge. Features like Teams/SharePoint external sharing can create oversharing and audit gaps if unmanaged. Pairing Microsoft Purview with a guest-less external collaboration layer like eSHARE keeps data in-tenant, applies existing controls, and gives CIOs/CISOs the visibility they need without slowing work.
What is the biggest Microsoft 365 governance challenge for CIOs and CISOs today?
Balancing collaboration speed with strong governance is the top challenge. Features like Teams/SharePoint external sharing can create oversharing and audit gaps if unmanaged. Pairing Microsoft Purview with a guest-less external collaboration layer like eSHARE keeps data in-tenant, applies existing controls, and gives CIOs/CISOs the visibility they need without slowing work.
How do organizations manage Microsoft 365 guest account sprawl?
Balancing collaboration speed with strong governance is the top challenge. Features like Teams/SharePoint external sharing can create oversharing and audit gaps if unmanaged. Pairing Microsoft Purview with a guest-less external collaboration layer like eSHARE keeps data in-tenant, applies existing controls, and gives CIOs/CISOs the visibility they need without slowing work.
