Cloud Solutions for Public Safety: Breaking Through Barriers

Cloud technology brings major advantages to public safety agencies: greater reliability, flexibility, and long-term cost savings. But transitioning to the cloud isn’t always simple. Agencies in the Public Safety and Justice (PSJ) sector face unique hurdles, from compliance demands to tight budgets.

To better understand these challenges, CentralSquare partnered with AWS to commission a nationwide survey of 157 PSJ professionals and agencies. The study, conducted by Cambia Information Group, included in-depth, 30-minute interviews with decision-makers responsible for technology investments in their agencies. Respondents represented a wide range of regions, agency sizes and leadership levels.

What we found was encouraging. Most agencies see the potential of cloud technology, but they’re also feeling stuck. Despite their readiness, four main barriers are holding many organizations back from fully embracing the cloud. In the next section, we’ll break down those barriers and explore how public safety agencies can overcome them.

The Current Reality for PSJ Agencies

Public Safety and Justice professionals see real value in cloud technology. Approximately 63% of agencies feel ready to take the next step because they understand its benefits:

• Improved disaster recovery (62%)
• Enhanced collaboration across departments and agencies (59%)
• Better citizen experiences online (55%)

These outcomes matter in high-stakes environments where uptime, teamwork and public trust are everything.

Despite this optimism, 71% of professionals say they feel stuck. Challenges like tight budgets, cybersecurity concerns, compliance requirements, and business continuity planning are keeping some agencies from moving forward.

What makes the difference? Progress. The farther along agencies are in their cloud journey, the more confident and optimistic they feel. That’s why having the right partner is critical. Two-thirds of respondents want a vendor with experience serving organizations just like theirs.

CentralSquare is here to help you get unstuck. With deep public safety experience and secure, scalable solutions, we’ll support you every step of the way. Keep reading to learn about the most common barriers slowing and preventing cloud adoption at other PSJ agencies.

Barrier 1: Budget

Budget concerns are the number one barrier to cloud adoption in public safety (46%). Many agencies assume that migrating to the cloud requires a large upfront investment. In reality, moving to the cloud can drastically reduce costs over time.

Agencies that switch to cloud solutions like CentralSquare often save up to 30% in IT costs in 5+ years. That’s because cloud technology eliminates the need for expensive hardware upgrades, server maintenance and physical infrastructure. Instead, you benefit from predictable, subscription-based pricing and only pay for what you use.

The cloud also reduces total cost of ownership (TCO) by streamlining updates, improving reliability and decreasing downtime. With fewer surprises in IT spending, public safety leaders can better forecast budgets and reallocate internal resources toward more strategic initiatives.

Ultimately, cloud adoption is a smarter investment that brings long-term savings, flexibility and stability to your operations.

Barrier 2: Security

Security is another barrier to cloud adoption, according to 41% of PSJ professionals. Concerns about protecting sensitive data are valid. But the reality is, today’s cloud environments often offer stronger security than traditional on-premise systems.

Strong security matters more now than ever before. External ransomware attacks now succeed 93% of the time. In 2021 alone, U.S. businesses lost over $6.3 billion to cybercrime, with $2.3 billion tied to business email compromise (BEC). Many of these incidents targeted outdated, poorly maintained on-prem systems that lacked modern defenses.

CentralSquare addresses these risks head-on with enterprise-grade security hosted on AWS GovCloud. Our solutions are CJIS-compliant, continuously monitored and built with layered protections to safeguard mission-critical data.

We use AI-driven threat detection and 24/7 monitoring to stop threats before they spread. Automatic patches and security updates ensure systems stay protected without relying on manual IT intervention. For agencies ready to strengthen their defenses, the cloud isn’t a liability, it’s an upgrade.

Barrier 3: Availability and Reliability

System availability and reliability remain significant concerns for public safety agencies considering a move to the cloud. With critical operations depending on uninterrupted access, agencies are understandably cautious about any risk of downtime. In fact, 38% of PSJ professionals cite this as a key barrier to cloud adoption. However, modern cloud infrastructure is designed specifically to meet these high-stakes demands.

Agencies need to trust that their systems will be online, secure and stable when it matters most. That’s why CentralSquare’s cloud solutions are backed by a 99.99% uptime SLA through AWS GovCloud, offering the kind of reliability public safety demands.

Our platform uses built-in redundancy and an active-active architecture to ensure that if one system fails, another is already running to take its place – seamlessly and without interruption. With multi-region data replication, even large-scale disasters won’t compromise data availability.

CentralSquare also provides 24/7 real-time monitoring from a dedicated team of cloud engineers, with automatic issue detection and failover response. In short, we eliminate the risk of system downtime, so you can stay focused on protecting your community.

Barrier 4: Compliance

Compliance remains a key concern for 37% of public safety agencies exploring cloud solutions. With sensitive data at stake, agencies must ensure that any technology partner meets rigorous regulatory standards, including CJIS and other state-specific requirements.

Many agencies are looking for a vendor with deep experience navigating these regulatory frameworks – and CentralSquare delivers. Our cloud solutions are built with compliance at the core, offering continuous monitoring for CJIS and state-level standards. We undergo regular third-party audits and penetration testing to ensure our environments remain secure and compliant.

To support agency-specific needs, we offer role-based access controls and advanced data governance tools that help manage who can view, edit or share information. Transparent reporting simplifies the audit process, giving agencies full visibility and control over their data. The result: a secure, compliant environment without the administrative burden.

Success from Early Adopters

Early adopters of cloud technology are showing what success looks like. When asked about barriers to cloud migration, 41% of these organizations suggested they’ve moved past common challenges like cost, security and system reliability. They’re no longer stuck. They’re refining their approach and tailoring the cloud to fit their agency’s evolving needs.

Agencies like those in Edgar County have embraced cloud technology. They’re improving service delivery, reducing IT overhead and gaining the flexibility to scale. Their success proves that the journey to the cloud isn’t as daunting as it seems. Once in motion, progress becomes natural and the benefits follow quickly.

“We are a smaller county with limited resources, so removing the hassle of server refreshes by moving to the cloud while saving money on equipment purchases helps us better focus on our core mission of keeping the community safe.”

Taylor Ray, 911 Director for Edgar County

CentralSquare is here to guide your journey to the cloud. Whether you’re still evaluating the move or working through early-stage obstacles, we’ll help you get unstuck. With secure, cost-effective solutions and easy integration, we’ll be your trusted partner every step of the way.

The path to the cloud doesn’t have to be hard. You just need the right team behind you. Schedule a discovery call today to learn how CentralSquare overcomes each of the barriers listed above.