Recently, a new message and stronger direction have emerged from our friends at Symantec concerning the cloud.

I hear very often that cloud platforms, specifically private clouds, are simply the next evolution of virtualization. This is incorrect and hides a massive amount of complexity, concern, and good old fashion work in a fog of assumption & misunderstanding. I'm not the type to be a real stickler for proper terms of art; generally if I can figure out what you’re after in a conversation I let it slide. However, this one is too big to leave alone.

DLT Solutions sponsored last month’s 3rd Annual Amazon Web Services (AWS) Public Sector Summit, where I saw firsthand that Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) are gaining acceptance and increasing traction as the Public Sector migrates workloads to the cloud.

Do you have questions about FedRAMP? What is FedRAMP? How will FedRAMP impact my agency? What do I need to know about FedRAMP to procure cloud computing services? These are only a few of the many questions we are hearing from customers. To address these questions and others, Shamun Mahmud, the security architect of the DLT Cloud Advisory Group, recently published a white paper entitled The Benefits of FedRAMP. The white paper details how federal IT agencies are being impacted by the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP).

The DLT Cloud Advisory Group is focused on the emerging cloud landscape and proactively engages with the public sector community interested in cloud computing. We also actively contribute to establish standards through our participation in various Standards Development Organizations. Along with IEEE, NIST, and the CSA, we are active contributors to the Cloud Standards Customer Council (CSCC). Most recently, we have been assisting the CSCC Security Working Group’s research efforts for their recent whitepaper, “Security for Cloud Computing: 10 Steps to Ensure Success.”

Hey, did you hear how NASA used Amazon’s cloud computing for its latest Mars mission? NASA’s management of the Curiosity Rover is demonstrating the considerable technical expertise of the scientists involved in the design and deployment of history’s greatest continuation of unmanned research on another planet. The JPL Curiosity Rover Team’s use of the latest in Amazon Web Services (AWS) Infrastructure and Platform support services (IASS) are demonstrating the team’s considerable understanding of the financial benefits as well.

With this post, I wrap up this three part series covering the findings of the GAO’s report on the overall progress of the Cloud First initiative. If you missed the first to parts, you can find them here and here respectively Quick recap: Earlier this month the Government Accountability Office released the results of their study on the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Cloud First policy. The GAO assessed the progress selected agencies made and identified challenges they are facing in implementing the policy.

And just like that, Shamun is back with his expanded thoughts on the GAO’s Cloud First findings. If you missed yesterday’s review of the first of the seven findings, click here. Quick recap: Earlier this month the Government Accountability Office released the results of their study on the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Cloud First policy. The GAO assessed the progress of selected agencies and identified challenges they are facing in implementing the policy. Shamun covers the next three findings in today’s post and will wrap up the series with the remaining for later this week.

Earlier this month the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released the results of their study on the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Cloud First policy. The GAO assessed the progress selected agencies made and identified challenges they are facing in implementing the policy. In response to the findings, Shamun Mahmud, DLT Cloud Advisory Group team member and a contributor to NIST Cloud Computing Working Groups shares some additional thoughts on the seven implementation challenges identified in the study. In the first of a three-part series, Mahmud tackles the first of the challenges. The remaining six will be covered in two upcoming posts.

As Featured on Technology Marketing Corporation’s Website, TMCnet.com The General Services Administration (GSA) is in the midst of launching an ambitious program designed to accelerate the safe adoption of cloud services within the U.S. Government. That program, the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP), is a collaborative effort between the GSA, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Department of Defense (DOD). FedRAMP will ensure cloud service providers (CSP) maintain adequate information security; reduce duplicated effort; decrease risk management costs; and streamline the procurement of cloud services.