Government Bill Pushes Cloud Computing for DoD

Grazed from GovInfoSecurity. Author: Jeffrey Roman.

Two members of Congress have introduced legislation that’s designed to help pave the way for the Department of Defense to make greater use of cloud computing providers to save money – as long as specific security requirements are met. Rep. Niki Tsongas, D-Mass., and Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Wash., introduced the Department of Defense Cloud Security Act, which would require the U.S. comptroller general and the CIO of DoD to assess the cloud security requirements of the Defense Department.

The bill would require a full evaluation of the overall security and potential capabilities of the current DoD cloud system; a determination of best practices related to cloud security by both public and private entities to establish security requirements for the DoD; and an examination of the potential for commercial cloud providers to host DoD information systems, the sponsors say…

Michael Hartigan, a spokesperson for Rep. Tsongas, says the legislation would push the DoD to take advantage of secure cloud capabilities being developed by commercial vendors and "learn best practices from other federal government agencies, including the intelligence community, that have already begun to do the same."…

Read more from the source @ http://www.govinfosecurity.com/bill-pushes-cloud-computing-for-dod-a-6795

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