The U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) authorized IBM [IBM] to deliver cloud services at the highest unclassified security level with direct access to the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Nonsecure Internet Protocol Router Network (NIPRNet) internal network, the company said Thursday.
DISA granted IBM a Conditional Authority to operate the cloud services. The high security level is called Impact Level 5 and it paves the way for department agencies that may want to take advantage of benefits of using a cloud services while managing sensitive data, IBM noted.
NIPRNet is used to exchange unclassified but sensitive information between internal users and provides users with Internet access. It consists of Internet protocol routers owned by the DoD. It was created by DISA to supersede the earlier MILNET. DoD also operates the Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNET), a set of connected computer networks used by DoD and the State Department to transmit classified information up to the Secret level, as well as the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System (JWICS) for Top Secret/SCI information.
The IBM Cloud services are hosted at the Allegany Ballistics Laboratory (ABL), a facility owned by the Department of the Navy and leased by IBM at Rocket Center, W.Va.
Operating out of the secure ABL data center, the company will provide defense agencies with dedicated environments, cloud technologies, a hybrid solution where they can connect preexisting on-premise applications with cloud-ready applications, migrate existing applications, and/or develop new applications, IBM said.
IBM said it is the first cloud provider allowed a direct connection to NIPRNet. “The authorization granted by DISA will enable other DoD agencies the opportunity ultimately to streamline their authorizations by leveraging the thorough process DISA followed,” the company said.
“Department of Defense agencies have the opportunity to embrace commercial cloud best practices and technology with the security of a government-owned facility. It will also provide DoD agencies with an ideal option to launch workloads in a hybrid cloud that can be easily integrated with their on premise systems,” Sam Gordy, General Manager for IBM Federal, said in a statement.
The company also noted that it has worked closely with the DoD; local universities like Frostburg State University, West Virginia University (WVU), Allegany College of Maryland and Potomac State College of WVU; the Greater Cumberland Committee, and other organizations to attract and retain talented persons who will work on projects critical to the government’s cloud strategy.