Amazon can now host Defense Department's most sensitive data...
AMAZON WEB SERVICES CAN NOW HOST THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT’S
MOST SENSITIVE DATA
By Frank Konkel September 13, 2017
Amazon Web Services has a new market for its cloud
computing, analytics, and storage services.
This week, the Defense Department granted the cloud
computing giant a provisional authorization to host Impact Level 5 workloads,
which are the military and Pentagon’s most sensitive, unclassified information.
“This further bolsters AWS as an industry leader in
helping support the DoD’s critical mission in protecting our security,” the
company said in a statement. “The AWS services support a variety of DoD
workloads, including workloads containing sensitive controlled unclassified
information and National Security Systems information.”
Already, DoD is using AWS to host sensitive,
mission-critical workloads, including the operational control system for the
Global Positioning System. The provisional authorization allows military
customers an easier route to use AWS for a variety of other IT services.
In total, three commercial companies—AWS, IBM and
Microsoft—are now able to host and store the military’s most sensitive
unclassified data. AWS has expanded its defense business, it remains the
dominant cloud service provider in the intelligence community by virtue of its
$600 million contract with the Central Intelligence Agency. AWS’ C2S cloud
hosts classified information for the 17 intelligence agencies.
The company’s Beltway presence continues to grow in lines
with its federal market share. AWS recently announced a new corporate
headquarters and up to 1,500 jobs in Fairfax County and expects a new East
Coast computing region to come online in 2018. Called US-East, the region will
essentially be a mass of computer networks operating by AWS entirely for
government customers, including the Defense Department.
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