JOHNSTOWN, Pa., Dec. 20, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Unclassified Remote Hosted Desktop (URHD) cloud computing system developed by Concurrent Technologies Corporation (CTC) for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) has become the first Software as a Service (SaaS) Provider to earn authorization by the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP). The FedRAMP Joint Authorization Board granted a Provisional Authority to Operate (P-ATO) on December 20, making this the first SaaS to be authorized by FedRAMP, the first to deliver a virtual desktop environment, and the first to have an agency sponsor.

FedRAMP is a U.S. Government-wide program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for cloud products and services. In accordance with a White House policy memo, all vendors who work with the U.S. Government will be required to meet the FedRAMP requirements by June 2014.
 
"CTC's SaaS virtual desktop environment proves that the FedRAMP authorization process works for all types of clouds, from infrastructure to software," said Matthew Goodrich, program manager for FedRAMP at the General Services Administration. "Additionally, CTC's use of Autonomic Resources ARC-P Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) for a portion of their offering demonstrates the ability of CSPs to partner and enhance service offerings to the federal government, while also saving time and money by leveraging a previously authorized provider's environment."
 
CTC partnered with FedRAMP-approved Autonomic Resources for IaaS delivery. Knowledge Consulting Group, a FedRAMP-accredited third party assessor (3PAO), independently validated and verified, through vigorous review, that the URHD meets FedRAMP requirements. 
 
"CTC's SaaS system is very unique in that it furnishes a virtual workspace that includes desktop as a service within the offerings provided by the SaaS architecture," Greg Hoffman, CTC's URHD program manager, said. "FedRAMP P-ATO increases agency confidence that CTC's cloud computing system is a sound platform for other federal agencies looking for secure connectivity to support the movement of their information to the cloud and to maintain that information.
 
"CTC delivered a robust security architecture that promotes secure inter-agency and inter-organization resource sharing. Through the use of the URHD, analysts, warfighters and deployed personnel can access the tools and data they need with cooperating agencies from many different client types including Windows PCs, Tablets and Smartphones. Information collaboration can occur without the need to completely couple separate agency networks."
 
The three major software components that make up the URHD SaaS user experience are the Launch Pad, where users can launch their virtual desktop and install additional applications; the dashboard, which provides useful information including system documentation and support contact information; and a Self Service Store (S3), which shows what applications are already installed and gives users the ability to request applications from an available list.
 
"CTC provides a variety of cloud computing services," Hoffman said. "Clients can be confident in CTC's ability to securely manage their data and computing systems. The FedRAMP Joint Authorization Board P-ATO for URHD is available to other federal agencies."
 
Additional information about how the URHD helps agencies move to the cloud is available at www.ctc.com/cloudsolutions.
 
About CTC

Concurrent Technologies Corporation (CTC) is an independent, nonprofit, applied scientific research and development professional services organization providing innovative management and technology-based solutions to government and industry. As a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, CTC's primary purpose and programs are to undertake applied scientific research and development activities that serve the public interest. For more information, visit www.ctc.com.
 
About NGA

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) delivers world-class geospatial intelligence that provides a decisive advantage to policymakers, warfighters, intelligence professionals and first responders. Both an intelligence agency and combat support agency, NGA enables the U.S. intelligence community and the Department of Defense (DOD) to fulfill the president's national security priorities. NGA also is the lead federal agency for GEOINT and manages a global consortium of more than 400 commercial and government relationships. NGA is headquartered in Springfield, Va. and has two major locations in St. Louis and Arnold, Mo. Hundreds of NGA employees serve on support teams at U.S. military, diplomatic and allied locations around the world. For more information about NGA, visit us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NatlGEOINTAgency or on Twitter at https://twitter.com/nga_GEOINT.