South Korean Firm Gains Cyber Certification for US Military Sales

South Korean defense company SNT Dynamics has attained a cybersecurity credential required for US Department of Defense contracts.

The milestone builds on the achievement of the company’s technology information protection head and chief information security officer, Jeong Ki-yeol, who earned the Pentagon’s top-level assessor qualification under the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) framework.

CMMC is a requisite process for industry partners to ensure networks handling sensitive acquisition and government data meet Washington’s cybersecurity standards.

Jeong’s designation, called the Lead CMMC Certified Assessor (Lead CCA), is the highest-level credential overseeing CMMC assessments and authorizations.

That post remains rare globally, with only four holders outside the US: two in South Korea, one in Canada, and another in Sweden, according to sources.

Meanwhile, the company itself has moved to align with US requirements as CMMC certification becomes mandatory across the defense supply chain.

It obtained Level 1 certification in 2024 and is undergoing final evaluation for Level 2, which it aims to receive by July 2026.

Level 2 certification serves as a critical position essential for accessing US military maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services and production programs.

“We will continue to strengthen our cybersecurity competitiveness as a defense company through US CMMC certification and other measures,” Seoul Economic Daily quoted Jeong as saying.

“Based on this, we will actively pursue export marketing for mass production and MRO of core products used in US military weapon systems worldwide.”