Securing Sensitive Data and Systems in the Cloud

Security must be the foundation of any large government cloud project. Fortunately, today’s cloud-based environments are more secure than on-premises data centers. Agencies looking to benefit from cloud technology can do so with the confidence that sensitive data will be protected, in accordance with the highest Federal standards of security and privacy.

The current challenge is not finding providers who can secure information—but selecting partners who can maximize the value of an agency’s cloud investment while putting security first.

Cloud Migrations Must Lead with Security 

Cognosante understands the government’s complex security and IT environment. Our cloud strategy—Cognosante Cloud Foundations—helps customers manage security risks without compromising on flexibility and innovation. Cognosante Cloud Foundations is grounded in our real-world experience developing cloud governance strategy and securing systems in the cloud.

As a FedRAMP High authorized and HITRUST CSF certified provider, we leverage partnerships with best-in-class technology partners to:

• Help customers migrate existing solutions;
• Advance agency capabilities using DevSecOps and Agile methodologies;
• Adopt emerging cloud capabilities to meet future needs;
• Operate complex workloads; and
• Customize cloud migrations based on customer needs; always leading with security.

Our partnerships and experience with Amazon Web Services GovCloud and Microsoft Azure Government empower our government agency customers access best-in-class innovative solutions with proven track records of performance.

The shift to offsite work in 2020 due to a global pandemic underscored the importance of using cloud-based, FedRAMP-certified partners to ensure the protection of confidential and sensitive information in unanticipated situations. Agencies with this foundation could shift their non-classified mission-critical workloads to a remote workforce almost overnight, without any degradation in security or continuity of operations. Our own transition of government contact center work to fully remote status would not have been possible without it.

Even so, making effective use of the cloud requires more than choosing an authorized provider. Migrating existing applications from conventional data centers to cloud environments may require redesigns or other updates to take advantage of services and functionality available in the cloud, or to ensure that no security protections are lost. Agencies need to consider the full benefits to be gained from the cloud and choose business partners who not only meet security requirements but who can also maximize the value of the cloud investment for current and future use.

Maximize the Return on Your Cloud Investment with a Holistic Approach

Cognosante’s security and privacy operational framework is based on Federal standards and guidance from NIST, FedRAMP, and additional agency-specific security requirements. Cloud Govern – the governance and security component of our Cognosante Cloud Foundations framework – brings rigor and expertise to not only comply with these standards, but to help agencies realize their full benefits.

Our approach to designing and securely deploying solutions in the cloud begins with developing a detailed understanding of system capabilities, functional and technical requirements, and data and system sensitivity. Our experts also consider business needs and cultural components of the enterprise to ensure technology balances well with people and processes. We then align all those factors to appropriate infrastructure-, platform-, and software-as-a-service cloud solutions.

We have established partner relationships with Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, all authorized to operate at the FedRAMP Moderate and FedRAMP High baseline level for specific platform services and regions. Our approach to solution security architecture, deployment, and operations is optimized for the cloud and meets government-wide and agency-specific standards.

Our team of cloud migration experts (including certified architects) integrate leading-edge technologies, repeatable processes, best practices rooted in Agile, SAFe®, ISO 20000/ISO 9001/27001/HITRUST certifications, and other value-added tools and utilities. The result is not just the implementation of a cloud solution, but a strategy that will enhance an agency’s mission effectiveness now and into the future.

Cognosante Delivers Cloud Success So Government Can Focus on the Mission

Cognosante has a proven track record of delivery at scale for Federal and state cloud migrations. Here are a few of our results for our customers:

• Established a unified cloud solution for the largest healthcare agency in the country with a strong focus on governance and security. To date, we have built cloud environments and migrated or are currently migrating almost 300 applications out of a backlog of 350 from on-premises data centers.
• Implemented organization-wide governance strategy for two of the largest Federal health organizations.
• Built the cloud-based infrastructure that, to date, has generated more than 16 million referrals and authorizations for Veterans receiving care in the community, and allows provider to send clinical information back to their electronic health records.
• Hosted several statewide cloud-based health information exchanges;
• Built an eHealth Exchange Data Hub and Dashboard to provide operational insight into one of the nation’s largest public-private health information networks. The eHealth Exchange Data Hub currently processes over 1 billion inbound transactions per month.

Learn how we help Government agencies maximize their investments in Cloud