DoD Unveils Secure, YouTube-Like Social Net

MilTube Video Is Safeguarded from Unauthorized Viewing, Distribution
DoD Unveils Secure, YouTube-Like Social Net
It's like having your cake and eating it, too. The Defense Department has created its own video social network known as milTube, sort of a YouTube behind secure network firewalls.

"Video is an extremely powerful tool for storytelling and sharing information among personnel," Justin Filler, deputy director of the Army's MilTech Solutions Office, said in a statement announcing the new venture. "MilTube provides a secure, internal environment for those connections to take place across the Armed Services."

The new website meets DoD's need for a dynamic way to share videos - including training, ceremonies and news clips - worldwide, MilTech said. Like YouTube, with channels, categories and tags, users can easily watch, upload, sort and search content. But because MilTube activities occur behind the firewall, the media are safeguarded from unauthorized viewing and distribution.

The video site is a companion to other social networks housed behind the firewall, including milBook, milWiki and milBlog. Known as milSuite, the integrated tools mirror what users are familiar with at home: wikis, blogs and social networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. With firewall protection, the estimated 88,500 users from all branches and organizations can share official unclassified internal information and engage in dialogue, the Army said.

"At a time when Department of Defense senior leaders are stressing efficiencies and cost savings, milSuite reduces duplicative efforts and facilitates knowledge sharing by creating a living encyclopedia where personnel can create, discover and verify information," MilTech said. "MilTube is a natural addition to the family, fulfilling a consistent request from members of the workforce for a central interface to upload and access video and audio files."

To meet bandwidth limits at different military bases, milTube diagnoses platform needs so users can watch and upload videos at any location. It will support multiple video formats as well as audio-only streaming. It will be available on desktop and mobile devices.

The MilTech Solutions Office, which oversees milSuite, is part of the Army's Program Executive Office for Command, Control and Communications-Tactical.





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