# NIST Releases Small Business Cybersecurity Guide

On November 2, 2026, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) released *Small Business Cybersecurity: Non-Employer Firms*, a practical guide for businesses without paid employees and firms with limited IT resources. It organizes risk-management practices around the six functions of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework. The guide does not establish a new procurement requirement or announce a solicitation, but contractors—particularly small firms handling sensitive information—can use it to assess account security, software updates, backups, monitoring, and incident-response readiness.

- Small contractors can use the guide’s framework to review these cybersecurity practices against their available IT resources.
- Procurement professionals may find the guide useful context when engaging small suppliers, but the release itself does not create a new contract requirement.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Information Technology
**Topics:** Cybersecurity
**Published:** November 12, 2026

### Government Entities
- National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

### Sources
- [NIST Released Guide for Businesses with Limited IT Resources](https://natlawreview.com/article/passwords-backups-nists-small-business-cybersecurity-guide) - The National Law Review