After finding security features of Microsoft cloud service satisfactory, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has granted DOD Level 5 PA accreditation to Microsoft Azure and Office 365 for handling controlled unclassified information (CUI).
CUI, basically refers unclassified information that meets certain requisite standards for safeguarding and dissemination controls pursuant to a legislation covering it, and government-wide policies. Earlier, similar information had a different nomenclature – Sensitive But Unclassified (“SBU”).
DOD Level 5 PA granted to Microsoft Azure and Office 365
By gaining the DOD’s Level 5 Provisional Authority (PA), Microsoft Azure has earned the recognition as the first and only commercial cloud provider to offer L5-approved DOD cloud to the U.S. Government Defense for maintaining its infrastructure, platform, and productivity services.
To date, we have received widespread interest in our new Level 5 capabilities from across the U.S. Department of Defense, including all branches of the military, unified combatant commands and defense agencies. Additionally, four DOD entities, such as the Defense Logistics Agency and the U.S. Air Force, are have already committed to using Office 365 U.S. Government Defense”, mentions a note on Microsoft website.
Adding DOD L5 authorization enables customers to:
- Gain unprecedented data-access controls, advanced threat protection and unified IT management
- Get round the clock protection for government-only infrastructure through geographically dispersed and hardened Microsoft U.S. data centers operated by screened personnel.
- Support unclassified National Security Systems (NSSs) systems.
- Use Microsoft Office 365 service for digital work to enable seamless collaboration across teams and organizations.
Microsoft Azure Cloud computing technology and services provide the Department of Defense (DoD) with the opportunity to deploy an Enterprise Cloud Environment in sync with Federal Department-wide Information Technology (IT) strategies.
Besides, It also assists the department in consolidating infrastructure, leverage commodity IT functions, and eliminate functional redundancies while improving continuity of operations thereby saving costs and improve efficiencies resulting from migrating commodity services to the cloud.
For more information, see this page.
