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The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) has chosen Singapore as its corporate headquarters. It will also establish a Global Research Centre, a Global Standards Secretariat and a Global Centre of Excellence for cloud security training and education under a three-year strategic private-public partnership with support from the Singapore government.

"After a highly competitive process, with interest from many candidates in the region, we are pleased to have selected Singapore as the key hub for CSA activities in the Asia-Pacific region," said Aloysius Cheang, managing director for the Asia Pacific at CSA. "The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) have demonstrated a great commitment to the CSA presence in Asia Pacific, which will be highly beneficial to our members in the region, and elevate Singapore as a global hub for cloud computing security."

The new HQ will help CSA corporate members to establish and enhance their presence in Asia Pacific, using Singapore as an operational base if desired. Members will be introduced to various EDB and IDA support and collaboration efforts that will be customized for their business activities in Singapore, as well as business opportunities and potential partnerships around the region and globally.

"Cloud security is an important focal area for Singapore," said Andrew Khaw, senior director of Industry Development Group at IDA. "The CSA will not only promote best practices, drive standards and encourage innovative applications and services in the arena of cloud security, it can also use its global network to facilitate development collaboration opportunities for Singapore infocomm enterprises. Such initiatives complement our efforts to encourage cloud adoption and develop capabilities in cloud security."

"Cloud computing at its core must function as a borderless, global utility that functions seamlessly across geographies yet supports jurisdictional requirements," said Jim Reavis, co-founder and executive director for the CSA. "The CSA finds Singapore to be an ideal partner to help build a trusted, stable and innovative cloud ecosystem."

"CSA's corporate headquarters in Singapore strengthens our position as the focal point for cloud security best practices, research and development," said Gian Yi-Hsen, director of the Safety & Security Industry Programme Office at EDB. "We expect the joint effort to create new platforms and drive innovation in cloud security solutions."

Founding sponsor Trend Micro, a global cloud security leader, will be the first security company within Asia Pacific to chair the CSA Asia Pacific Executive Council. "We are delighted that Singapore has been chosen as the site for its headquarters," said Ken Low, chairman of CSA Asia Pacific Executive Council and Asia Pacific director of Enterprise Security for Trend Micro. "As a diverse region, we believe CSA's presence will enable organizations to build and implement standards in cloud security and achieve a higher return on their cloud investments."

The CSA has country and city-specific chapters and chapters-in-development in ten countries, including Australia, China (including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan), India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Thailand, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines and Singapore.

It aims to promote the use of best practices for providing security assurance within cloud computing, and provide education on the uses of cloud computing to help secure all other forms of computing. Its goals and initiatives include engaging regional key stakeholders such as government, legal experts, service providers, technology providers and consumers; and customizing and developing relevant best practices and standards for the Asia-Pacific market.