An interesting bit of information that has largely flown under the radar for the past 2 years…
How the CIA Partnered With Amazon and Changed Intelligence
The intelligence community is about to get the equivalent of an adrenaline shot to the chest. This summer, a $600 million computing cloud developed by Amazon Web Services for the Central Intelligence Agency over the past year will begin servicing all 17 agencies that make up the intelligence community. If the technology plays out as officials envision, it will usher in a new era of cooperation and coordination, allowing agencies to share information and services much more easily and avoid the kind of intelligence gaps that preceded the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. For the first time, agencies within the IC will be able to order a variety of on-demand computing and analytic services from the CIA and National Security Agency. What’s more, they’ll only pay for what they use.Intelligence community loves its new Amazon cloud
U.S. intelligence agencies moving from legacy systems to new cloud computing infrastructure built by Amazon AMZN -0.02% Web Services are pretty happy about it thus far, according to a report in NextGov. Speaking at an AWS-sponsored conference Friday, Alex Voultepsis, chief of the National Security Agency’s Engineering and Planning Office said the new cloud is helping agencies “stuck in heritage systems” start moving to the new C2S cloud, according to the report. C2S is shorthand for the commercial cloud services contract that resulted in the new cloud which started going live last August-----------------------
For the record, I don't actually condemn the notion of Amazon Web Services for offering this service, because from what little I know the intelligence community as a whole badly needed to revamp their approach and use of IT services (as to whether Amazon is the most competent vendor and whether this particular cloud services approach is best, I can't really say). But I do have concerns with such a very large company growing to be a critical player in that field, when it just also happens to be heavily invested in mass media, AND is rather heavily involved in politics. Has the stench of an empire being formed.