Snowflake wins IRAP approval in Google Cloud Melbourne
Mon, 18th May 2026 (Yesterday)
Snowflake has completed an IRAP assessment for its deployment in Google Cloud's Melbourne region, covering workloads up to the PROTECTED level.
It now has IRAP-assessed deployments for Australian public sector use across Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud. That gives government customers the option to run workloads on the data platform across all three major hyperscale cloud providers.
IRAP, or the Infosec Registered Assessors Program, was developed by the Australian Signals Directorate to assess the effectiveness of a system's security controls. Public sector organisations, particularly at the federal level, use the results to determine whether a system meets their security requirements.
Snowflake's Google Cloud Melbourne region deployment was assessed by a certified third-party IRAP assessor and found to align with PROTECTED-level control requirements. In the Australian government system, PROTECTED applies to information whose compromise could cause serious damage to national interests, organisations or individuals.
The result strengthens Snowflake's position in a market where cloud vendors and software providers are trying to meet government assurance standards for storing, processing and analysing sensitive information. For agencies weighing cloud deployments, IRAP status can be a key factor in procurement and architecture decisions.
Public sector focus
Snowflake has been building its credentials with government customers as agencies modernise older technology estates and look for ways to manage larger volumes of data. The completed assessment means Australian Government agencies can deploy a broader range of workloads on its platform in the Google Cloud Melbourne region.
Those workloads can include combining data from separate systems for reporting and analysis, sharing data between teams or agencies under governance controls, and running analytics or artificial intelligence tools on sensitive datasets. Snowflake also pointed to the need for interoperability across environments as agencies combine legacy systems with cloud services.
Glenn McPherson, Snowflake's regional vice president for Australia, linked the assessment to that shift in public sector technology spending.
"Unlocking the full value of data and AI is essential for Australian Government agencies to improve service delivery, strengthen security, and to enable faster, better-informed decisions," McPherson said.
He said departments are trying to modernise existing environments while managing rising data volumes and new AI projects.
"As agencies modernise legacy environments, manage growing volumes of sensitive information and embark on AI initiatives, they need a platform like Snowflake to support secure analytics, governed collaboration, and operational scale," he said.
Cloud coverage
By adding Google Cloud's Melbourne region, Snowflake has completed what it described as coverage across the three main hyperscalers used by enterprise and government customers in Australia. That may matter for agencies that have already standardised on one cloud provider or want the flexibility to choose between them without giving up an assessed deployment model.
The result gives public sector agencies greater assurance when using Snowflake's platform to work with data under security and governance controls. Customers can also use the platform to consolidate siloed datasets, share governed data and support different analytical workloads from one environment across clouds.
Competition in the Australian public sector cloud market has intensified as agencies push ahead with digital service delivery, cyber security upgrades and data-led policy work. Vendors have increasingly sought local hosting arrangements, sovereign controls and recognised assurance frameworks to qualify for more sensitive government projects.
For Snowflake, the latest assessment broadens the set of public sector customers it can target on Google Cloud infrastructure in Australia. The Melbourne region has become an important location for vendors seeking to meet data residency and security requirements while keeping systems close to Australian users.
McPherson said the assessment forms part of a broader effort to support government demand for secure data and AI tools.
"Completing an IRAP assessment at the PROTECTED level across all three major hyperscalers underscores our ongoing commitment to security and supporting Australian public sector customers with the controls and assurance they need to embrace an AI and data-driven future," he said.