Due to the fiscal constraints confronting the Defense Department, the DoD Chief Information Officer is investigating the use of commercial cloud computing as a potential cost-saving measure.
To that end, a 45-day study was commissioned to examine the balance between risks to the department across the wide spectrum of computing needs and the costs of traditional security measures, wrote DoD acting CIO Terry Halvorsen, in the memo attached to the report.
The study, "The DoD Cloud Way Forward," introduces three new constructs to help DoD cloud customers identify the appropriate security for use of commercial cloud computing. A key aspect of the report is clear guidance to both cloud service providers and DoD cloud customers describing the cradle-to-grave process they must follow to move DoD computing into commercial cloud
Infrastructure, Halvorsen wrote.
The study identifies key additional work items which the DoD must complete to implement report recommendations and remove current barriers to the usage of commercial cloud. These items include additional technical refinement of security requirements, an update to the department's policies that currently hinder the use of commercial cloud, and continued focus on the resolution of legal issues that constrain the use of commercial cloud.
As follow-on work items progress, the findings and conclusions will be reflected in revised DoD policy guidance and security models, Halvorsen wrote.
The DoD Cloud Way Forward Report is available from the Defense Information Systems Agency website: http://iase.disa.mil/Documents/dodciomemo_w-attachment_cloudwayforwardreport-20141106.pdf.