Q&A: What Illumio’s FedRAMP® Authorization Means for Our Federal Customers

Illumio is excited that our Illumio Government Cloud has received FedRAMP® authorization at the Moderate level. This achievement shows how much we care about helping our federal customers stop breaches from spreading.  

We spoke with Natalio Pincever, vice president of product management at Illumio, to learn more about the value of Illumio’s FedRAMP authorization for our federal customers.

Q: What does it mean to be FedRAMP Moderate Authorized?

A: To get this designation, the Illumio Government Cloud had to meet strict security requirements set by the US federal government. This meant building the platform to meet over 300 security controls and extensive testing to make sure it meets the government’s standards.

Getting FedRAMP authorization means federal agencies can now buy SaaS versions of Illumio Core and Illumio Endpoint.

Q: What does FedRAMP authorization mean for Illumio’s federal customers?

A: The authorization reflects Illumio’s ongoing investment and commitment in our government customers.  

Achieving FedRAMP is a years-long process. It’s costly, time consuming, and resource intensive. But we did it because we’re committed to our federal customers for the long run. We want to be partners as they work towards Zero Trust.

Agencies can now also benefit from the operational savings of a SaaS offering while still having access to an on-premises solution. This gives agencies more flexibility and allows them to use resources more efficiently.

Q: How can Illumio’s FedRAMP status help agencies achieve Zero Trust?

A: The shift towards Zero Trust is the result of federal government mandates and guidelines such as:

• Executive Order 14028

• OMB M-22-09 Federal Zero Trust Strategy

• CISA’s Zero Trust Maturity Model (ZTMM)

• The Department of Defense’s Zero Trust Reference Architecture (DoD ZTRA)

These key documents have made Zero Trust an important part of federal cybersecurity plans. Agencies now have a clear guide for using Zero Trust, making it easier to add to their security systems.

Network segmentation is a key part of every Zero Trust strategy. Network segmentation technologies like microsegmentation, also called Zero Trust Segmentation (ZTS), assume that breaches will happen. It helps agencies divide their network into safe zones that protect their mission-critical assets from breaches. If a breach does happen, agencies can quickly contain it so bad actors can’t access mission-critical systems and data.

Q: Why should federal agencies choose Illumio for ZTS?

A: The Illumio Government Cloud includes Illumio Core and Illumio Endpoint. These solutions help agencies stop breaches from spreading across servers and endpoints with ZTS.  

With Illumio ZTS, agencies can:

• Get real-time visibility into their network’s traffic flows so security teams can assess risk and create informed segmentation policies.  

• Stop breaches from spreading across your network by isolating critical resources and limiting unnecessary movement.

• Meet federal requirements for agencies to build a Zero Trust architecture.

Q: What security threats are government agencies up against?

A: Nation-state actors and global cyber threats are always trying to steal US government secrets. With more global connectivity, this is easier than ever. Now, with the rise of generative AI technology, bad actors can create advanced attacks quickly and often.

Breaches will happen, and traditional security methods aren’t working. We saw this recently with the nation-state attacks on federal agencies by the Midnight Blizzard hacking group. It’s only a matter of time before the next one.

Federal agencies need to protect their data, execute their mission, and maintain citizens’ trust. With Illumio now FedRAMP authorized, we can help agencies be sure that a small security problem won't become a huge disaster.

Find the Illumio Government Cloud in the FedRAMP Marketplace.  

Want to learn more? Contact us today to speak with one of our federal cybersecurity experts.