The second part of the Aerospace & Defense Insights series delves into the recently proposed Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council rules intended to combat cyber threats. These efforts are within the realm of procurement law. The impetus revolves around standardizing cybersecurity contractual requirements across Federal agencies for unclassified Federal information systems under the denomination of FAR Case 2021-019.
Briefly, FAR Case 2021-019 is intended to streamline the processes involved in cybersecurity across all federal agencies. This is critical due to the unique and far-reaching implications of cyber threats in an increasingly interconnected world, especially against institutional giants such as government agencies.
In addition to this regulatory action, the FAR Council has addressed a second, related matter. This one is tagged as FAR Case 2021-017, which, similar to its companion legislation, concerns cybersecurity. However, this second initiative is angled more specifically towards creating robust reporting and information sharing requirements for government contractors concerning cyber threats and incidents.
The first part of the series outlined the proposed changes in an introductory manner. The continued analysis of these newly proposed regulation efforts signifies an in-depth exploration of their broader implications, impact and potential evolution. It is important not to lose sight of this multi-part exploration in the Aerospace & Defense Insight Series as it continues to shed light on the evolution of procurement law in the cyber age.
As ever, these proposed rules form part of a larger conversation surrounding the modernization and robustness of cybersecurity policies across federal agencies and their partners. Legal professionals working in this realm, particularly those working within corporate entities or law firms involved with government contracts, should closely monitor these changes.