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"Update: Google responds. Please see the bottom of the post.\r\n\r\nAccording to recently unsealed legal documents, Google appears to be promulgating\u00A0falsehoods. At least according to Microsoft's reading of the documents in question.\r\n\r\nIf Microsoft is correct, then Google has been consciously claiming to have certain safety certifications that, again according to the documents and how Microsoft interprets them, they do not have.\r\n\r\nAt the heart of this discussion is the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) certification, a high water mark for application safety. Google currently claims that its Google Apps for Government product has FISMA certification. As proof, this is a screenshot of the Google Apps for Government page taken at the time of this post's writing:\r\n\r\nLet's put Microsoft's reading of the documents aside for now, and look at the text as written by the US government concerning the certification. The relevent sections:\r\nOn December 16, 2010, counsel for the Government learned that, notwithstanding Google\u2019s representations to the public at large, its counsel, the GAO, and this Court, it appears that Google\u201Fs Google Apps for Government does not have FISMA certification. [\u2026] We immediately contacted counsel for Google, shared this information and advised counsel that we would bring this to the Court\u201Fs attention. According to the GSA, Google\u201Fs Google Apps Premier received FISMA certification on July 21, 2010. However, Google intends to offer Google Apps for Government as a more restrictive version of its product and, Google is currently in the process of finishing its application for FISMA certification for its Google Apps for Government. [\u2026]\u00A0To be clear, in the view of GSA, the agency that certified Google\u2019s Google Apps Premier, Google does not have FISMA certification for Google Apps for Government. [Emphasis TNW]\r\nTo be frank, the text seems plain: Google does not have FISMA certification, and to claim otherwise is misleading. Microsoft demands answers:\r\nAs I thought about this further, my second reaction was to wonder what Google is thinking as it continues to claim that Google Apps for Government has FISMA certification. I don\u2019t pretend to have all the answers and I acknowledge that there are frequently two sides to a story. But what is the other side of the story in this instance?\r\n\r\nGoogle can\u2019t be under the misimpression that FISMA certification for Google Apps Premier also covers Google Apps for Government. If that were the case, then why did Google, according to the attachments in the DOJ brief, decide to file a separate FISMA application for Google Apps for Government?\r\nThis entire dustup began when Google sued over a contract that was awarded to Microsoft, citing the need for 'open competition.' Google cited its FISMA certification status as one of the chief reasons as to why its products deserved to be considered alongside with what Microsoft was offering.\r\n\r\nThis could merely be a mistake by Google, a\u00A0miscommunication. However, that would be an uncharacteristic stumble by the company.\r\n\r\nWe expect Google to speak out on the issue shortly, and will update this post when that occurs.\r\n\r\nUPDATE: From Google:\r\n\r\n\u201CThis case is about the Department of Interior limiting its proposal to one product that isn\u2019t even FISMA certified, so this question is unrelated to our request that DOI allow for a true competition when selecting its technology providers.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nEven so, we did not mislead the court or our customers. \u00A0Google Apps received a FISMA security authorization from the General Services Administration in July 2010. \u00A0\u00A0Google Apps for Government is the same system with enhanced security controls that go beyond FISMA requirements. \u00A0As planned we\u2019re working with GSA to continuously update our documentation with these and other additional enhancements.\u201D"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://thenextweb.com/microsoft/2011/04/11/microsoft-google-is-lying-about-safety-certification/2011/>