Cloud

Starting a website can be hard, we get it. There are many vendors you have to work with and steps to tie together. What DNS records do I need to add? How do I enable DNSSEC? Is my website secure and safe from cyber attacks? These types of questions plague millions of website operators globally. We are excited to share that it is possible to manage all of these steps in one location using Google Cloud.

Google Cloud offers you the ability to manage the entire lifecycle of a website from start to finish. You no longer have to worry about managing different subscriptions and understanding the integration between vendors. Leveraging the Google Cloud offering will allow for you to have a scalable, reliable, and safe deployment. Additionally, there are extra benefits that you can take advantage of, like getting Google Managed SSL certificates for free and taking advantage of best in class DDoS protection with our Cloud Armor solution.

Architecture diagram

The following architecture diagram illustrates all of the components of the solution.

Key components of the solution:

Cloud Domains

Cloud DNS

Compute and Storage

Global HTTPs Load Balancer

Cloud Armor

Cloud CDN

Buying a Domain on Google Cloud

Purchasing and verifying a domain can be a tricky process with many steps. Cloud Domains makes this easy and straightforward to manage. Cloud Domains integrates seamlessly with Cloud DNS making the management even easier. There is full API support which allows for programmatic management if you are managing a larger portfolio. 

Managing DNS with Google Cloud

Our Cloud DNS solution is a managed DNS infrastructure which is scalable and highly available. Easy management of private and public DNS zones makes this a one stop shop for DNS management. Public DNS records are anycasted globally using Google’s distributed network. It is easy and straightforward to enable DNSSEC which will help protect your end users from malicious actors.  

Initializing Compute and setting up static object storage

Running your backends on Google Cloud compute has numerous advantages. You can use a managed instance group to run your websites. Managed instance groups allow for a highly scalable and efficient deployment. When demand goes up the number of instances will scale seamlessly, and likewise if demand falls the active compute can scale down. This allows for you to only be running what you need at a given moment. You can easily create multi-zone deployments which increases reliability and performance. With full API support, automation and management is easy and fast. Using a managed instance group allows for you to automatically and safely deploy updates with a variety of customizations available.

For static objects you can store them in our Cloud Storage solution. This is perfect for content like images and videos which are not constantly changing. You can store large quantities of data which is available worldwide. It is easy to transfer content into Cloud Storage with multiple tools available.

Setting up an external https load balancer

The external https load balancer is a global proxy-based layer 7 solution that serves as the entry point for all of your traffic onto Google’s network. Our advanced load balancing solution allows for integrated traffic management and is highly customizable to fit your needs. You can leverage a Google managed SSL certificate for easy deployment and ongoing management.

Securing your traffic with Cloud Armor

Cloud Armor is Google’s best in class DDoS defense solution and Web Application Firewall (WAF). You can rest easier knowing that Google’s network has your back. We have a long history of mitigating some of the most complicated and largest DDoS attacks on record ( blog link). With Cloud Armor you can additionally take advantage of preconfigured WAF rules (Mod Security Rule Set 3.02), adaptive protection, and recently rate limiting. All of this ensures that your website stays online and is protected from attacks.

Caching static content with Cloud CDN

For content that is cacheable like images or short videos, you can use Cloud CDN to enable fast and cost efficient delivery. Google has Cloud CDN pops all over the world which will help ensure that users from the regions that matter to you have a seamless and fast experience. Cloud CDN is easy to enable and get started with. 

Youtube video

If you would like to see a further overview of the architecture and components of this solution as well as a detailed configuration walkthrough please check out this video.

For more information on any of these solutions please check out their respective documentation hubs:

Cloud Domains

Cloud DNS

Managed Instance Group

Cloud Storage

External HTTPs Load Balancer

Cloud Armor

Cloud CDN

Over the last decade, financial service organizations have been adopting a cloud-first mindset. According to InformationWeek, lower costs and enhanced scalability were the biggest drivers for cloud adoption in financial services, and cloud-native applications allow access to the latest technology and talent, enabling adopters to rebuild transaction processing systems capable of supporting very high volumes and low latency.

Both Neo4j and Google Cloud have been using relationship-based data representations since the beginning, and we’re dedicated to using this technology to help financial services customers drive business transformation. We are excited about the prospects of financial services (FinServ) cloud systems and believe that graph data in the cloud can help solve significant challenges in the industry.

Data Challenge #1: Risk Management and Compliance

First among the top concerns for any CIO moving to the cloud is risk management and compliance. Disconnected, uncontextualized, or stale data create opportunities for fraud and financial crimes to occur. The fact is when it comes to FinServ, the question is not “if” but rather how often an attack will occur.  Unfortunately, incidents have been trending upward over the last decade, and COVID has only exacerbated this reality. Financial crimes affect the bottom line both in the remediation of these crimes and in intangibles like brand value.  

Add to this the complexity of international banking, which makes “compliance” a moving target. Penalties due to noncompliance are a constant concern to any FinServ organization.

The tabular representation of information with a fixed number of columns that never change prevents a description of an ever changing world with changing characteristics. Relational databases are great if the world you describe does not move fast but have limitations when data structures are highly interlinked and not homogeneous.

Neo4j Aura on Google Cloud provides a foundation for creating dynamic, futureproof, scalable applications that adhere to the security standards and protocols today’s financial services organizations require to meet the challenges of finding and preventing bad actors. This also includes enterprise scalability; reaching over 1 Billion nodes and relationships to streamline queries and provide solutions that meet regulatory and privacy compliance across geographies. Neo4j has helped some organizations save billions of USD in fraud in the first year of deployment alone.  

What makes graph technology the best choice for fraud detection use cases is that the relationships between the data-points are as important as the data-points themselves. Let’s take as an example, one John Smith approaches a multi-national banking institution to manage the primary account for his new holding corporation.  

While no one has any record of John R Smith Holdings LLC, the bank’s application built on graph technology understands that there are several well-known entities owned by John Smith Holdings. The application also identifies several well-known board members who bank with this institution. Due to this relationship-driven approach, the bank now understands John R Smith is not “John Smith,” who previously attempted to open an account for his holding corporation, which had no information associated with it prior to two months ago.

Data Challenge #2 Manual Processes and Inefficiencies 

The ubiquity of the cloud offers an opportunity to deploy automation at unprecedented levels to tackle the errors and inefficiencies that manual processing allows to creep into processes. When data comes from disparate, perhaps legacy systems – which may have become siloed and “untouchable” over the years – further complexity arises. As an example, if someone in sales types “John Smith” into a CRM system not knowing that John R Smith is the spelling in the customer data master, it may result in two separate and potentially conflicting records. Being able to join those records together in a mastered view helps to solve this problem. In addition, low data quality equates to an increase in risk, costs, and implementation times for new systems. 

Neo4j Aura on Google Cloud provides automation and artificial intelligence (AI) that reduces manual processes and the errors that accompany them. In this graph architecture each node, which can represent a person, will have labels, relationships, and properties associated with it. This allows for the use of AI which can easily understand that John Smith in the CRM is the same John R Smith in the customer master. The information contained in Neo4j can be connected bi-directionally to ensure consistency across applications and data sources. 

One of the benefits of this approach is that linking information allows organizations to keep the full value of the data, rather than forcing the data into predetermined tabular representations, with the risk of losing valuable information and insights.

Data Challenge #3: Customer Engagement and Insight

Another significant concern is the high expectations today’s customers have for every interaction. End users are accustomed to predictable experiences on their digital devices, and FinServ apps are no exception. Added to this, the “Covid economy” has driven digital adoption significantly across demographics; even among customers who might traditionally have used in-person services. This also equates to increased expectations for personalized, predictable experiences with every digital interaction. We know that latency has always been a key consideration for financial trading, but a recent ComputerWeekly study showed that every financial organization should ensure their visible latency is at 10 milliseconds or less. Customers no longer accept their broadband is at fault.

Finally, blind spots in the customer journey often result in dissatisfaction, which ultimately leads to increased churn. Without gaining actionable insights from your customers, there is no room to innovate and iterate on what they are looking for in your products and services. And this translates to losing market share and competitive advantage.

The NoSQL architecture, specifically the dynamic schema and structure of Neo4j Aura gives you the ability to take charge of your data and make changes according to your development cycles or newer data models. This equates to faster builds, more comprehensive releases and a wider, richer data-set that can be contextualized and understood instantly. Graph technology is the logical choice for building a Customer 360 application. Under this approach organizations not only get valuable insight into the individual client’s behavior and patterns, but also those of their family, friends and colleagues. This allows for stronger personalization, targeted campaigns and successful execution, resulting in increased customer satisfaction and retention levels.

Graph Technology on Google Cloud

Neo4j is a recognized leader in graph database technology and the only fully integrated graph solution on Google Cloud, helping to fill a common need for Google Cloud customers. Both Neo4j and Google Cloud are invested in continuing to grow our partnership and mutual product direction.  

You can find and deploy the Neo4j graph database straight from the Google Cloud marketplace, whether you want to download the software for an on-premises deployment, use the virtual machine image, or use the hosted solution, Aura on Google Cloud, the graph database-as-a-service. In any deployment, you get the same enterprise-grade scalability, reliability, and connectivity along with successful, repeatable use cases you can rely on to resolve your particular challenges and integrated billing. 

For a real-world example of how graph technology can optimize financial services, you can read our Case Study with fintech Current. Current, a leading U.S. financial technology platform with over three million members, used Neo4j Aura on Google Cloud to create a personalization engine based on client relationships. 

To learn more about Neo4j Aura on Google Cloud for FinServ organizations, register for our webinar on Thursday, December 16 with Jim Webber, Chief Scientist, CTO Field Ops at Neo4j and Antoine Larmanjat, Technical Director, Office of the CTO, Google Cloud. 

Click here to Register

In early November more than 27,000 innovators gathered virtually for our second annual Google Cloud Government and Education Summit. Leaders from across the globe inspired and engaged us over two days with their stories of innovation, resilience, and persistence, even in the most challenging of times and circumstances. 

Speakers shared how they’ve embraced technology to digitally transform — enabling their teams to accomplish more at greater scale, empowering their organizations with data and information, and building human connections with technology through interaction with constituents and learners.

This year, we also focused on building stronger organizations, leaders, and professionals, with an emphasis on creating opportunities to cultivate sustainability, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). 

Day two was affectionately named Learning Day — and we featured 21 interactive sessions designed to help students and professionals advance their future. There was something for everyone — for those who currently work in technology and want to see what’s coming next in the cloud, those thinking about a future career in cloud technology, and educators teaching our next generation of technologists.

We packed a lot of content and engagement into this year’s summit. Here’s a quick look at the numbers.

27.3k registrants from 151 countries

More than 80 speakers from government and education

14 government sessions

12 education, health, and research sessions

10 sessions focused on personal, professional, and organizational growth, with emphasis on DEI, and sustainability initiatives

29 learning sessions

21 region-specific sessions – spanning Asia-Pacific, EMEA, and Latin America  sessions, including 18 customer speakers

And, we introduced six new solutions, services, and certifications to help power innovation in government, education, and research.

Google Workspace earns FedRAMP High Authorization 

Google Cloud earns Department of Defense Impact Level 4 Provisional Authorization

Google’s new RAD Lab solution helps spin up cloud projects quickly and compliantly

Google introduces the Women’s Collective – a forum for public sector women across regions and technical aptitudes to get together, learn, strategize and grow. Join via pubsecconnect.com 

New Public Health Decision Support tools that power rental and housing assistance efforts nationwide

New Google Cloud Student Success Service tools that help educators scale individualized learning with an AI-powered interactive tutor

Can’t Miss Content

If we missed you for the live broadcast or you want to catch more sessions, we have great news. Google Cloud Government and Education Session is available on demand, so you can continue exploring and learning at your leisure. 

It’s hard to choose from all the great content at this year’s summit. I offer a few of my favorites below to get you started in your learning journey.

Government and Education Summit Global Keynote: Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud kicked off the Summit to discuss the need for a “transformation cloud” for the public sector and highlight security and compliance advancements for this community. Then, Mike Daniels, Vice President of Global Public Sector at Google Cloud, spoke with public sector leaders from around the world —  including Amy Pechacek, Secretary-designee, Department of Workforce Development, State of Wisconsin; Lori Carrell, Chancellor, University of Minnesota Rochester; and Gerald Mullaly, Director UK Prime Minister’s Office and Cabinet Office — about opening doors to digital transformation to accomplish more at greater scale, empower decision makers with data and information, and build human connections.

Contact Center AI Transforming Constituent Experience:  Innovative agencies across the public sector are transforming the business of government call centers – increasing call handling speed, capacity, and customer satisfaction. The city of San Jose shares how it implemented virtual agents and utilized machine learning to create custom translation services for a seamless user experience integrated into existing 311 services. And, the US Postal Service explains how it’s using Contact Center AI to automate package tracking, achieve consistent results in packaging centers across the country, and improve package management and customer satisfaction.

Sentiment Analysis Powers Vaccine Distribution and Opioid Analytics:Hear from the California Office of Digital Innovation about how the state is using Google Cloud Sentiment Analysis to power Intelligent Vaccine Impact (IVIs) solutions, and learn how the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse is using sentiment analytics to combat the opioid epidemic.

Reimagining the Learning Experience: Learning platforms are changing the student experience – allowing for customized educational goals mapped to individual needs and preparing learners to be their best selves with tailored learning pathways. Experience two different paths for success – from the Council Bluffs, Iowa Community Schools pilot around classroom virtual automation solutions to the work the Michigan Corrections system is doing to reinvent their learning systems.

Accelerating Time to Science to Fight COVID-19: The pace of scientific discovery has accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic more than ever before. At the height of COVID-19, researchers focused their efforts on fast-tracking the therapeutic discovery process, with cloud-based programs accelerating virtual screening and compound analysis. Learn how Google Cloud helps accelerate time to discovery and the vast computing resources that drive speed and efficiency.

Amplifying Voices: Developing a High-Impact Workforce through Belonging and Allyship: Strong teams emerge when members take the time to understand and accept each other’s unique story. Magic happens through that understanding: you discover everyone’s strength to advance allyship. Reggie Butler, Founder and CEO of Performance Paradigm, shows how to shift the paradigm in traditional team structures to build team- level belonging and an inclusive environment where everyone feels comfortable and confident in bringing their voice — and their power — to the table.

A Conversation with Vint Cerf and Jim Hogan on Disability in Tech: In this session, Vint Cert, regarded as one of the founders of the internet, connects with Jim Hogan, an autistic Googler and a neurodiversity advocate. Hear how these two dynamic leaders define disability and the specific challenges they faced – and continue to face – in tech. And, gain valuable insight into their advocacy journey, how they’re scaling their efforts for greater impact in the workforce, and what they’re excited about within the tech inclusion and accommodation space. 

Day One Closing Keynote: Opening Doors and Driving Inclusion: We closed Day One of the summit with a discussion focused on DEI. I had the honor of hosting Megan Smith, CEO of shift7, and Anjali Adukia, cofounder of the ‘Messages, Identity and Inclusion in Education’ Lab at the University of Chicago, as they discuss the importance of opening doors to everyone, from all backgrounds — and how technology can help surface and reduce inequalities. They share how we can mitigate unconscious biases, bring more voices to the table, and build more inclusive environments. 

We want to share a special thank you to all of the public sector, education, and health leaders, as well as leadership development experts and Google colleagues who shared their time and talents so generously to make this global summit a reality. We also want to thank all of you who took time out of your busy schedules to join us in learning and growing.

Let’s keep the conversation going. What was your favorite part of this year’s Government and Education Summit? What would you like to see next year? Drop me a line or share your thoughts here.