Industries / Defense industrial base / Brilliant at the Basics
Brilliant at the Basicsfor Defense Suppliers
Twenty practices. One partner to help you meet them.
The Department of War CIO’s IT and OT Top 10 lists, and the Logos services that help small and mid-sized suppliers put each one in place.
What it is
On October 1, 2026, the Department of War’s Chief Information Officer launched “Brilliant at the Basics” for Cybersecurity Awareness Month. It reinforces core cyber fundamentals across both IT and operational technology (OT) and is aimed at small, mid-sized and non-traditional defense industrial base partners. The Department issued two Top 10 lists of best practices in July 2026, one for IT and one for OT, and the campaign runs four weekly themes: Be Aware, Be Vigilant, Be Secure and Be Connected.
The Department presents the lists as educational guidance. They do not replace CMMC, DFARS 252.204-7012 or NIST SP 800-171, but many of the practices overlap with those controls, so work on one supports the other. See the current CMMC status.
IT Top 10
How Logos helps with each IT practice
Phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication
We design and roll out strong sign-in for your people and systems. Identity and MFA.
Comprehensive asset inventory management
Asset and identity baselines are built in the first weeks of onboarding and kept current through monitoring. Managed SOC.
Strategic technical debt reduction
A vCISO roadmap puts the retirement of legacy systems and unsupported software in order, against your budget. vCISO services.
Flexible technology stack
We select technology objectively, around your business and the tools you already own. Our approach.
Logical segmentation to limit adversary lateral movement
Segmentation design and review, and a contained enclave that keeps CUI away from the rest of your network. Network security, CUI scoping and enclave design.
Risk-based vulnerability management
Vulnerability scanning and reporting inside managed security, ranked by risk, plus testing to prove what matters. Managed SOC, Penetration testing.
Integrate security early in the development lifecycle
Design reviews and security-by-design guidance before systems are built or bought. Security architecture review.
Secure AI adoption and data protection
We govern AI agents with LimaCharlie Viberails, which checks tool calls against policy before they run and keeps an audit trail. We use LimaCharlie GRID for AI-assisted security operations, within guardrails your team sets and with every action logged. Policies for responsible AI use and a review of your cloud and Microsoft 365 settings protect your data. Managed SOC, vCISO services, Microsoft 365 and cloud security.
Resilient backup and disaster recovery architecture
Backup and recovery testing, and an incident response plan your people can use. Incident response planning.
Continuous technical workforce readiness
Security awareness training and practice phishing for your staff, and tabletop exercises for your leaders. Compliance support, Tabletop exercises.
OT Top 10
How Logos helps with each OT practice
Identity and access control
Strong sign-in and an access review for the people and systems that touch your plant. Identity and MFA.
Validated asset inventory
Asset discovery across plant-floor and operational networks. OT security.
OT-specific incident response and recovery plan
Response plans and playbooks, tabletop exercises and an on-call response retainer. Incident response planning, Incident response retainer.
Manage known vulnerabilities
A risk assessment built around how your processes run, with a plan that respects your operating windows. OT security.
Remote access pathways
Secure remote access, and alternatives to broad VPN access. Network security.
System resiliency
Recovery testing and continuity planning against your recovery goals. Incident response planning.
Supply chain security
A vendor risk program, and guidance for the supplier flow-downs around you. vCISO services, CMMC for subcontractors.
Review processes
Regular reviews and reporting: monthly reports, quarterly business reviews and a roadmap that evolves. How we work.
Where to start
Start with a baseline. We use our baseline assessment to show where you stand against both lists, then give you a prioritized plan, so you fix the practices that matter most to your business and your contracts first.
The campaign page also points to free and low-cost help, including Project Spectrum, CISA resources and the DC3 DCISE program. See the Department’s Brilliant at the Basics page for a full list of free resources.
Bring us the complicated part.
Talk with a credentialed CISO and an accountable team. For CMMC questions call 877-855-CMMC, or email [email protected].
Brilliant at the Basics is a Department of War CIO campaign. Logos Systems is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department of War. This page describes how our services relate to the published lists and is not legal or contractual advice.