Expert: Government cloud paper falls short
- 10 January, 2011 12:46
- Comments 3
The Government’s draft consultation paper into cloud computing is a good first step, but does not provide enough momentum or vision according to Ovum research director, Kevin Noonan.
The Department of Finance and Deregulation’sdraft cloud computing strategy aimed to provide a blueprint of where the Federal Government was heading in terms of hosting services and data in the cloud, rather than in traditional brick and mortar IT systems.
It claimed services could be provided on private cloud platforms within five years while “citizen information” could be placed on the public cloud within 10 years, or a private cloud within two years.
But Noonan said while the first step of outlining a vision was necessary, the Australian Government was falling behind when it came to moving to the cloud.
“It does very little to advance the Australian Government’s position compared to the rest of the world,” he said. “We started out being well behind and this doesn’t push us very far.
“Given the Government’s need to show more outcomes from the National Broadband Network, I would’ve expected more to push us towards an industry leading perspective.”
As a comparison, Noonan said the US Government had set clear directives to its public servants as well as timelines in a recently released strategy document. He added the UK Government had already been working on a cloud solution for over a year.
“The US Government put out a 25 point implementation plan…it said that the cloud would become the default position through what they’re calling a “Cloud First” policy,” he said.
But Noonan said there were departments within the Federal Government that were actively working towards a cloud, including the Australian Taxation Office, Department of Immigration and Citizenship as well as the Human Services portfolio.
Submissions to the Government about the paper will close on January 31, 2011. For more information, visit The Department of Finance and Deregulation.
Nominations for the 2012 ARN IT Industry Awards open on Tuesday, June 12.
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Comments
MoiToo
Is it just me, or should we all be a little scared of our government, of any flavour, putting "citizen information" in a cloud environment?
Historically governments don't do this sort of thing well, using emerging technology or unproven concepts has proven inadequate in the past.
Moreover, cloud computing is in its infancy, and is currently experiencing security problems that are not specific to implimentation companies.
I like the concept of cloud computing for many industries, but when it comes to my personal information by my government, I want them to retain control, and reduce security risks as much as possible.
david poole
why are we evaluating "the cloud" from a government perspective?
surely there are only 3 reasons to do so.
1. the cost to store information
2. the security of information
3 why the information needs to be stored
4 what is coming next, in technology, and is it better
Otherwise, its all for the benefit of those who sell "the cloud"
did Kevin Noonan go to Joeys
david poole
sorry, 4 reasons
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