EU May Restrict U.S. Cloud Giants, Including Microsoft, from Handling Sensitive Government Data

Europe may finally be ready to put on the brakes with its overreliance on cloud services from American tech companies. If everything goes ahead as planned, it could be one of the largest shakeups in cloud infrastructure in years.

Europe may restrict Microsoft, Google, and Amazon from handling critical government data

The news first reported by CNBC late last week suggests that the European Commission is currently exploring rules limiting the use of US-based cloud providers for handling sensitive data by EU governments and other public institutions.

The rulemaking process is said to be included in the “Tech Sovereignty Package” set to be released on May 27 by the EU. Although there are internal negotiations currently taking place within the European Union, the direction thus far is quite evident: Europe needs more control over its important data and access rights.

The proposals, according to officials involved in the negotiations, may impose restrictions on the utilization of non-European cloud services by government entities in the EU in critical industries. This involves financial, legal, and healthcare infrastructure sectors.

CNBC quoted a Commission official who said that the “core idea is defining sectors that have to be hosted on European cloud capacity.” Another official reportedly added that “U.S. cloud providers could face restrictions in certain sensitive and strategic sectors.”

It is important note that such measures will not entirely exclude AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud from government contracts. However, the new measures will likely target how these firms process sensitive workloads.

Europe’s growing “digital sovereignty” push is becoming very real

In light of increasing geopolitical tensions with the United States, Europe seems less willing to depend solely on American providers of digital infrastructure.

One of the key issues reportedly causing anxiety for the region involves the United States’ CLOUD Act of 2018, through which American agencies can compel companies based within the US to provide them with data irrespective of where it may be physically located.

This issue has been pushing Europe towards its “digital sovereignty” agenda for quite some time. Earlier this month, multiple reports pointed out France plans to replace Windows with Linux and adopt EU tech solutions to boost digital sovereignty and reduce reliance on Microsoft. Not to forget, a $2.8 billion lawsuit against Microsoft over Windows Server pricing has recently also moved to trial in the UK.