Blackberry Mobility Featured Article

Google (News - Alert) has recently announced the launch of its new cloud community “Google Apps for Government.” Having been designed with specific features for government employees and officials, the new set of applications integrates security controls that have been approved by the U.S. government. The apps incorporate “the same great Google applications that people know and love, with specific measures to address the policy and security needs of the public sector,” according to an official blog from the search engine giant.

As the first set of cloud computing applications to receive Federal Information Security Management Act certification, Google Apps for Government’s security controls have been reviewed by the federal government’s General Services Administration. The GSA (News - Alert) has “issued an authorization to operate,” and Google’s blog notes that “this review makes it easier for federal agencies to compare our security features to those of their existing systems.”

Storing data such as Gmail and Calendar items in a “segregated system located in the continental United States,” Google officials will pursue further certifications for Google Apps for Government, and will issue more applications available at federal, state, and local levels. As the apps are part of an intricate and secure cloud community, Google claims that they offer “higher reliability, best-in-class disaster recovery, and access to a steady stream of innovation,” setting Google Apps for Government apart from the run-of-the-mill cloud computing applications available for those working at the governmental levels.