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Labor Department moves to the cloud
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02/01/10 12:41 PM ET
It's the first cabinet-level department to move a sizable operation entirely to a "cloud computing" platform, a sign that the Obama administration's push for the new technology is slowly catching on.
The Labor Department--and 22 agencies under its umbrella--is now using a cloud system built by Global Computer Enterprises (GCE). The Reston, Va.-based company says its the department's first financial system overhaul in more than 20 years. Outsourcing the department's data storage is part of a seven-year, $50 million contract to revamp its financial management system.
GCE says its "cloud"--the giant servers storing all of the department's financial data on the Internet--is completely secure.
Let's hope so, considering all of the Department of Labor's sensitive financial information is at risk if a hacker finds a way to high-jack the servers. That's the main worry for federal agencies thinking of moving their data to clouds built by Amazon, Google, Microsoft, IBM, Salesforce.com and others targeting government business.
Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra has been a vocal advocate of cloud computing since he joined the administration last year. He says it's an easy way to save money and improve efficiency. But there are fears that sensitive and even classified information isn't safe on servers maintained remotely by other entities. Microsoft, in fact, has proposed legislation to update privacy and security laws to boost confidence in the cloud technology.
Migrating all that data to the Web and teaching employees how to access it isn't a quick process. GCE said it took 18 months to get the Labor Department floating on the clouds. Imagine how long it will take other agencies that are just now starting to think about making the shift. In another 18 months, technologies will probably be drastically different.
The Labor Department--and 22 agencies under its umbrella--is now using a cloud system built by Global Computer Enterprises (GCE). The Reston, Va.-based company says its the department's first financial system overhaul in more than 20 years. Outsourcing the department's data storage is part of a seven-year, $50 million contract to revamp its financial management system.
GCE says its "cloud"--the giant servers storing all of the department's financial data on the Internet--is completely secure.
Let's hope so, considering all of the Department of Labor's sensitive financial information is at risk if a hacker finds a way to high-jack the servers. That's the main worry for federal agencies thinking of moving their data to clouds built by Amazon, Google, Microsoft, IBM, Salesforce.com and others targeting government business.
Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra has been a vocal advocate of cloud computing since he joined the administration last year. He says it's an easy way to save money and improve efficiency. But there are fears that sensitive and even classified information isn't safe on servers maintained remotely by other entities. Microsoft, in fact, has proposed legislation to update privacy and security laws to boost confidence in the cloud technology.
Migrating all that data to the Web and teaching employees how to access it isn't a quick process. GCE said it took 18 months to get the Labor Department floating on the clouds. Imagine how long it will take other agencies that are just now starting to think about making the shift. In another 18 months, technologies will probably be drastically different.
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