For defense contractors moving to the cloud, compliance isn’t just a box-checking exercise—it’s a shared responsibility. But many organizations mistakenly assume that once they adopt a secure cloud platform, compliance is “taken care of.” The truth is more nuanced.
What Shared Responsibility Really Means
In cloud environments—especially government clouds like Microsoft 365 GCC or GCC High—responsibility is divided between the cloud provider and the customer.
Microsoft’s responsibility: Physical security, infrastructure, platform-level controls, and baseline compliance capabilities (FedRAMP, ITAR, etc.)
Your responsibility: Data classification, access policies, configuration, incident response, and ongoing enforcement of compliance frameworks like CMMC or NIST 800-171.
Why This Matters
If sensitive data is leaked due to misconfigured access controls or unmonitored endpoints, the liability doesn’t fall on Microsoft. It falls on you.
Misunderstanding this shared model can lead to:
- Gaps in CUI protection
- False confidence during audits
- Non-compliance with DFARS, ITAR, or FAR CUI rules
Bridging the Compliance Gap
The best defense is proactive governance. This includes:
- Role-based access configuration
- Secure collaboration policies
- Centralized logging and audit trails
- Security training tailored to government workloads
When moving into Microsoft 365 GCC High, these elements become even more important due to stricter enforcement requirements and additional configuration complexity.
That’s why many government contractors turn to GCC High migration services, which provide expert guidance to configure workloads correctly and ensure responsibilities are met on both sides of the shared model.
Shared responsibility doesn’t mean shared blame. Government contractors must understand where their responsibilities begin—and ensure they’re equipped to fulfill them.