The Defense Industrial Base (DIB) is a network of organizations, facilities, and resources that provide our government with materials, products, and services for defense purposes and particularly for our military. Being an Army Veteran myself understanding DFARS compliance is essential for our national security and military readiness. DFARS is a regulation that mandates defense contractors to safeguard Covered Defense Information (CDI) and report cyber incidents to the Department of Defense (DoD) within 72 hours of discovery. It requires compliance with specific cybersecurity standards as found in NIST Special Publication 800-171. Below is a graphic to show you how the pieces connect. Trust me this is just a start. As my Drill Sergeant told me during basic training, dress right dress and this applies to what is needed for compliance.