What is required for an artifact to be considered acceptable evidence in a CMMC assessment?

For an artifact to be considered acceptable evidence in a CMMC assessment, it is essential that it demonstrates the implementation of relevant processes. This ensures that the evidence is grounded in real practices and activities that the organization has carried out in relation to the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification requirements.

Artifacts that illustrate how security controls are put into practice provide verifiable proof that the organization not only has policies in place but is actively following them. This verification is crucial for assessors as they evaluate an organization's compliance with the specific CMMC model level.

In addition, showing implementation helps in establishing a link between documented procedures and actual behavior, which is important for the integrity of the assessment process. This kind of direct evidence allows assessors to evaluate the effectiveness of a company's cybersecurity posture and its ability to protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI).

The other options do not align with this fundamental requirement. While documentation from an external auditor, combat readiness, or signatures from leadership may hold significance in other contexts, they do not directly provide evidence of active implementation of security processes necessary for CMMC compliance.