Is Microsoft GCC High the Right Choice for Your Business?
Compliance
Compliance
Compliance
Is Microsoft GCC High the Right Choice for Your Business?
11/2024
5
min read
Introduction
GCC High stands for Microsoft 365 Government Community Cloud High. It is a type of Microsoft Office 365 license made specifically for US Defense contractors who need to comply with specific compliance requirements in their contracts.
Think of it as Microsoft Email, Word, Powerpoint, etc except Microsoft guarantees that a company’s data is kept within the US and the people in the datacenter are US citizens. Most people can't tell the difference between Microsoft GCC High and a normal commercial Microsoft 365 license that most businesses use. However, GCC High allows Microsoft to ensure certain compliance requirements are met for the US Defense Industrial Base.
What are the two license families in GCC High?
01
Office 365 - A cloud-based suite of productivity apps. Familiar applications include Microsoft Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel. Depending on the plan a company gets, subscriptions also include apps and services such as Skype for Business, SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, etc.
02
Microsoft 365 - A bundle of services that includes Office 365. It also includes Windows 10 Enterprise, Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS), and machine learning.
What is the difference between GCC High and Azure Government?
Many get confused between GCC High and Azure government. A good way of thinking about it is Azure Government cloud gives a company the ability to run services within an Azure government data center, while GCC High is the actual services (Email, Word, Powerpoint, etc) that Microsoft is running on the company’s behalf.
Is GCC High better cybersecurity than Microsoft Commercial?
A common misconception about Microsoft 365 Government Community Cloud High is that it somehow offers better cybersecurity than the commercial version of Microsoft or Office 365. While there are additional requirements for individuals handling a company’s data within Microsoft and different data centers, the product doesn't have substantially different cybersecurity than the commercial product.
Previously when one of the co-founder's of Atomus worked at Microsoft he noticed that because Microsoft Government was forked off of the commercial product, government products were slower to get updates and respond to outages and incidents than their commercial counterparts.
When considering GCC High, it is important to consider that there are compliance requirements met by the product, but this doesn't necessarily mean the product has better cybersecurity than the commercial equivalents.
How do I know if GCC High is right for my company?
Identifying a company’s compliance requirements:
The first question to ask is whether or not your company deals with ITAR, EAR, NOFORN or export-controlled data. If it does, it would be prudent to at least consider GCC High to comply with these requirements.
What are alternatives to GCC High?
There are many options to compare against GCC High. While GCC High is a great product for companies in the defense industrial base, businesses with different compliance requirements might be better suited with different alternatives offered by Microsoft and competitors.
Can I afford GCC High?
As of November 2022, Microsoft 365 Government Community Cloud High goes for 50% higher than the same type of Microsoft Licenses in Commercial or GCC. This is also much more expensive than other commercial software offered by companies such as Google.
Another challenge when it comes to GCC High affordability is the fact that licenses are paid for 1 year in advance. So that means instead of paying for licenses monthly, a company will pay for the licenses upfront which is a cash flow consideration to consider.
If Microsoft 365 Government Community Cloud High is something you’re looking at getting, read our latest blog on what to know before transitioning to Microsoft GCC High.
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