PLANNING AND LEADERSHIP FOR A BETTER WORLD
PLANNING AND LEADERSHIP FOR A BETTER WORLD Recently at Smarter Technology, we discussed the push for cloud computing by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC). Now, the federal government is furthering is pro-cloud initiatives in the form of cyber-defense.
Recently, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) hosted a Cyber Colloquium in northern Virginia. There, Gen. Keith Alexander, commander of United States Cyber Command, discussed the ability of cloud computing to handle a major cyber-attack on the country.
The NSA (pictured here) views cloud computing as an ideal defensible environment.
"The vulnerabilities we face are extraordinary," Alexander said, according to Network World. “The cost of cybercrime to the global economy is estimated at $1 trillion, and malware is being introduced at a rate of 55,000 pieces per day. Look at what's going on regarding theft of intellectual property—it is being stolen at the largest rates in history.”
According to Alexander, cloud computing may be the key to preventing cybercrime because the technology unifies a variety of different computing environments into one manageable system. It also reduces IT costs and allows the government to redirect money toward more efficient purposes.
With its recent cloud computing initiatives, the National Security Agency (NSA) has cut system administration costs by 50 percent. It has also decreased the number of help desks from 900 to just two.
"We need defensible architectures, and we have to change the way we think about defending systems," Alexander said. DARPA and the NSA view cloud computing as an ideal defensible environment.
In November, at the Cyber Colloquium, which had about 700 attendees, DARPA sought to bring open discussion about cyber-defense and security. Cloud computing will just play a small part in this larger initiative.
"Few revolutionary strategic advantages resulted from operating in a vacuum," explained Daniel Kaufman, office director of DARPA's Information Innovation Office, in a statement. "The pace, impact and reach of cyber demands collaboration. That's why DARPA has invested heavily in cyber research that spans the performer spectrum and makes it easier for those with ground-breaking innovative cyber solutions to work with us."
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