State and local governments just got another federally aligned option for locking down privileged access.
Keeper Security announced that its Keeper Security Government Cloud (KSGC) platform has achieved GovRAMP Authorization at the High Impact level, clearing the way for state, local, and educational (SLED) organizations to deploy its zero-trust, zero-knowledge Privileged Access Management (PAM) platform in environments where a breach could cause severe operational or financial damage.
In practical terms, GovRAMP High means Keeper can now be used to protect high-impact, non-classified systems and data—workloads where compromise could significantly disrupt public services or erode public trust.
For SLED IT leaders facing escalating ransomware attacks and chronic staffing shortages, that’s more than a compliance checkbox.
What GovRAMP High Actually Means
GovRAMP—formerly StateRAMP—provides a standardized framework for assessing cloud service providers used by SLED agencies. Its High Impact designation aligns with NIST Special Publication 800-53 Revision 5, the same baseline underpinning FedRAMP High.
Translation: this is the top tier for non-classified government cloud security.
Keeper says the authorization validates that KSGC meets stringent requirements around access control, audit logging, encryption, and risk management. The company already holds FedRAMP High Authorization, along with FIPS 140-3 validation, SOC 2 Type II and SOC 3 attestations, ISO 27001/27017/27018 certifications, and a spot on CISA’s Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) Approved Products List.
That stack of certifications positions Keeper alongside a small but growing club of security vendors cleared for high-impact public-sector workloads.
Why Privileged Access Is Under the Microscope
The timing isn’t accidental.
SLED organizations remain prime ransomware targets, often due to credential misuse, privilege escalation, and inadequate access controls. Recent CISA guidance has repeatedly flagged compromised credentials as a primary attack vector in public-sector breaches.
Meanwhile, agencies are juggling hybrid work, cloud migrations, and legacy infrastructure—all with limited cybersecurity headcount and budgets.
Add AI into the mix. Research cited by Keeper notes that 41% of educational institutions have experienced AI-related cyber threats. Whether through AI-assisted phishing or automated reconnaissance, attackers are scaling faster than many local IT teams can respond.
Privileged Access Management has therefore shifted from “nice to have” to mission-critical. Standing administrative privileges, shared passwords, and unmanaged third-party access are increasingly viewed as unacceptable risks.
What Keeper’s Government Cloud Offers
Keeper Security Government Cloud is positioned as a unified, cloud-native PAM platform built on a zero-trust architecture and zero-knowledge security model. In plain English: credentials are encrypted in a way that even Keeper can’t access them, and users get only the permissions they absolutely need.
According to the company, KSGC enables SLED agencies to:
- Enforce least-privilege access across on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments
- Eliminate standing administrative credentials
- Secure third-party and vendor access without exposing passwords
- Monitor, record, and audit privileged sessions
- Protect endpoints and web-based apps through controlled, zero-trust access
For compliance-heavy environments, session monitoring and auditability are especially critical. Incident response in government often hinges on detailed logs and provable separation of duties.
“GovRAMP High Authorization validates that Keeper Security Government Cloud is built to protect the systems and data that SLED organizations simply can’t afford to get wrong,” said Zoya Schaller, Director of Cybersecurity Compliance at Keeper, in a statement.
Market Context: Compliance as a Competitive Weapon
The public-sector cybersecurity market is crowded, with vendors like CyberArk, BeyondTrust, Delinea, and HashiCorp all competing for privileged access dominance. What increasingly separates contenders isn’t just feature sets—but compliance credentials.
GovRAMP alignment streamlines procurement by reducing duplicative security assessments, a major bottleneck for SLED buyers. Agencies can map GovRAMP High to existing NIST controls and accelerate approval processes.
Keeper has maintained GovRAMP authorization since 2022, but the High Impact upgrade raises its ceiling for deployment in more sensitive environments.
In a market where security leaders must justify every procurement decision to oversight boards and auditors, High-level authorization can tilt RFP outcomes.
The Bigger Picture
Cyberattacks against local governments and schools aren’t slowing down. If anything, threat actors view these institutions as soft targets with critical data and limited defenses.
Zero-trust architectures and modern PAM solutions are becoming foundational rather than optional. The challenge for SLED agencies isn’t recognizing the need—it’s finding solutions that balance usability, cost, and compliance without overwhelming already stretched teams.
With GovRAMP High now in hand, Keeper is positioning its Government Cloud as a turnkey answer to that equation.
For SLED IT leaders, the question isn’t whether to tighten privileged access controls. It’s how quickly they can deploy them without breaking mission-critical operations.
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