4 things to consider before purchasing a cross domain transfer solution
There are number of factors to consider when procuring any IT product- functionality, flexibility, cost, compliance, the list goes on. And the stakes are even higher when an agency is procuring a secure information sharing Cross Domain Solution as it needs to efficiently and securely support the most critical of missions. In this blog, we discuss some of the key decisions agencies need to consider as they go through the Cross Domain Solution procurement process to include Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) vs. Government-Off-The-Shelf (GOTS) solutions, data diodes vs. software guards, Assessment & Authorization requirements and the total economic impact of the solution.
COTS or GOTS?
Private industry is helping agencies better manage the new realities of IT acquisition. So why “build” if it already exists? Often, after a team invests significant time and money into a GOTS solution design, production and deployment, the result stands a good chance of being outdated. Alternatively, with COTS, agencies benefit from constant developmental efforts, product upgrades and maintenance cycles from the vendor. Cost, quality, speed and flexibility are only a few of the key advantages of a COTS solution. Read our whitepaper to learn more.
Diode or Software Guard?
When it comes to network segmentation, your solution should provide redundancy and include several layers of data monitoring. Software guards provide agencies with greater functionality- especially as a result of the inclusion of inspections within the trusted domain. Guards utilize military-grade inspection routines that are highly protected and controlled. Additionally, multi-domain architectures introduce additional complexities for diode solutions. While they provide firm physical separation between networks, many organizations quickly realize the limitations inherent in the diode solution. Read our whitepaper to learn more.
Does it Raise the Bar?
The NSA & NCDSMO’s Raise the Bar initiative raises the security architecture bar for Cross Domain Solutions beyond even the NIST Risk Management Framework controls, to continually improve the status quo within the cross domain community. Every year the bar raises to combat rising threats. Not only are Forcepoint’s cross domain solutions included on the US NCDSMO’s baseline list for TSABI, SABI, and meet Raise the Bar guidelines, but they are on the CDM Approved Product List. Listen to this podcast to hear our CTO discuss Raise the Bar.
What is the Total Economic Impact?
Finally, as you’re searching for solutions to deploy, it’s critical for your agency to consider the benefits (quantifiable and unquantifiable) and cost. Forcepoint commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) study and examine the potential return on investment enterprises may realize by deploying three cross-domain solutions that work together. The study concluded that a Forcepoint customer has seen $2.5 million in user desktop environment savings with our solutions that provide secure access to virtual desktops, transfers files, and prints across multiple networks simultaneously. Read this report to see how one agency realized a benefits PV of $3.97 million with Forcepoint Cross Domain Solutions.
Forcepoint offers Raise the Bar-compliant COTS cross domain access solutions and transfer guards. Forcepoint’s robust Cross Domain Solutions support thousands of government agencies and users worldwide and have helped agencies realize an ROI as high as 239%. Learn more about our suite of products here and schedule time to talk to our team today.
