FCC launches new cloud-powered website

The Federal Communications Commission plans to launch a new website in early 2011. The site will be the first by a major federal agency to be powered by cloud computing technology, Politico.com reports.

The FCC’s current website is 8-years-old and has been criticized as one of the worst and most outdated government sites. The FCC hopes its new site will spur greater cloud adoption within the government. Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra said he wants federal agencies to store their data on the cloud rather than government servers. Such a move would save money and increase efficiency, he said.

FCC Managing Director Steven VanRoekel said he believes the government can address cloud security concerns. “You can issue people laptops with encrypted hard drives, which will be part of the solution, but another elegant solution is to allow them to run a remote desktop session that goes away when they close the window,” he said.

The FCC is not the first government agency to embrace the cloud. The Army recently announced plans to move its email services to the cloud and the government recently lauched its own cloud apps website for federal and state agency use.