How the Cloud Generation is Shaping Federal IT Modernization
Modernization and the mobile workforce are driving a new security paradigm
Baby boomers and millennials.
These two generations have become the focus of government agencies in recent years, and with good reason. The baby boomers continue to retire, leaving a knowledge gap in government operations, while millennials continue to enter the workforce, bringing new skill sets but also unique needs.
For all the differences between these two groups, they do have one thing in common that is driving a third group that government agencies need to focus on above all others: They have become the cloud generation. Now, the cloud generation cannot be found in the Census or any official designation of generations. Instead, it is a way to think about today’s workforce. The cloud serves as a common denominator between these two distinct groups.
The cloud generation is everyone who lives and works in this unique era, as computing breaks the boundaries of desktops and data centers to embrace the mobile, social, global, crowd-sourced, always-on realities of modern life. It is people that embrace new technologies and want to access data wherever they are, whether that be at work, at the airport or on their living room couch.
To prepare for the future, federal agency technology leaders need to ensure technology solutions can meet the needs of these employees, and the citizens they serve, in a safe and secure way. As the federal government undertakes its information technology transformation path as outlined in the IT Modernization Report, technology leaders have the unique opportunity to modernize systems to meet the specific needs of the cloud generation.
Solutions for the Cloud Generation
Cloud computing and the way data is now accessed has fundamentally changed the protection landscape. Federal agencies were once able to create a secure perimeter over their networks. As long as that network perimeter remained secure, agencies could be assured that the data inside it was protected as well.
This perimeter existed before the emergence of the mobile workforce in government. When employees could only work on a computer at a fixed desktop or through a tightly secured internal network, this configuration was effective. Now, though, controls need to follow the data, wherever it goes. As such, agencies need to look to end-to-end solutions that provide visibility into how data is accessed, where it is accessed and who is accessing it. This can help agencies limit unauthorized access to data, protect data integrity and stop unlawful users from accessing data to be used in harmful ways.
Cloud security has evolved to act in ways similar to the perimeter-based security agencies are accustomed to. Instead of protecting an area, these solutions protect the data. If an agency employee, for example, wants to access the data at his or her home to run an analytical model, they can. The data will remain secure as part of the integrated cyber defense architecture.
These evolved security capabilities are available with the right solutions provider. While cloud companies integrate security into their offerings, they are not technically responsible for that risk, which falls back on the government. Federal agencies need to take extra steps to ensure their cloud environments have the best security tools available in order to ensure protection at the data level.
Agencies need to talk to leading security solution providers to discuss these new security architectures, which are generally implemented as cloud security gateways (CSGs) with varying security controls and integrations, enabling layered cyber security, implementing defense-in-depth for cloud applications, and enhancing access controls.
This cloud-native security “stack” is an intelligent control point, enabling broad network access and scalability. It is the virtual broker for all communications interacting with shared, commercially-available, cloud-native applications, while also securing Internet access and email. This type of security helps federal agencies go beyond TIC and EINSTEIN to provide an additional layer of protection in commercial cloud environments.
Moving Forward
The federal government is in the midst of a fundamental change. Weighed down with legacy systems the IT modernization movement looks to not only eliminate older systems, but fundamentally change how government operates. With technologies like 5G soon coming federal agencies will see even more change. They must make sure their systems are ready.
The cloud generation is here to stay. Federal technology leaders need to think about how they can best support employees and the new mobile workforce. The focus on federal IT modernization can help to accelerate this transition, but it needs to be implemented in a thoughtful, strategic and, most importantly, secure manner.
