Highly Sensitive Information from DoD to be Stored on Cloud

Cloud server technology will soon be used by The Department of Defense to store the department's sensitive data. Procurement is currently searching for vendors interested in providing such a service.

While it's true that Amazon’s cloud service technology is already authorized to store lower-level Defense data, the announcement would be the first time that highly classified “level six” files information have been considered for cloud-based storage and distribution by an
outside party.

While it's true that the move could improve the efficiency of the DoD, using consumer and enterprise-grade systems will not be secure enough to protect high-level data.

In an attempt to address the problem, the Department of Defense is taking under consideration two methodologies to ensure that documents will be safe. Allowing companies to lease floor space from the DoD is the first strategy. The floor space would be used to house physical servers on-site. The other is to have cloud service providers send server equipment in sealed containers to the DoD, and the department would set up the equipment.

In both scenarios, there would be a physical connection between the data servers and the DoD. Since the cloud network would be self-contained within the DoD, the thinking is that it would be extremely difficult for hackers to breach the network directly. However, depending on the details of the implementation , classified documents could be accessed if they were to be taken from the 'cloud' and then saved on an unsecured computer.

As it stands now, the transition to the cloud is still in its developmental stages. Companies will have until early November to submit proposals for the project.

Based on posting by Paul Gonzalez of The Washington Examiner