Trump 2.0: How data sovereignty is now a top priority in Europe.

Strategies for less cloud dependency on the US tech giants

Donald Trump's second term in office in the US has catapulted the issue of data sovereignty to the top of the agenda for many IT managers at European companies. The US government's handling of international data protection agreements, the extraterritorial effect of laws such as the Cloud Act and increasing geopolitical uncertainties are causing more and more European countries to doubt the long-term reliability of US cloud providers.

As recently as mid-March, for example, the Dutch parliament officially called on the government to reduce its dependence on US software companies and, among other things, to promote the creation of a cloud service platform under Dutch control. The main reason for the MPs' initiative is the significant change in relations with the Trump administration. Its proximity and direct influence on major tech entrepreneurs such as Musk, Bezos, Page, Brin, Altman and co. are increasingly seen by political and business leaders as a real threat to European data sovereignty. This impression is further reinforced by the extremely lax, if not irresponsible, handling of data security by senior US government officials after it became public that highly confidential military information was shared via private mobile phones in a chat group of the commercial Signal service.

As the majority of European companies and public administrations have based their infrastructure on the cloud platforms of Microsoft, Amazon or Google, in this blog post we look at how organisations can reduce their dependencies and effectively minimise the risk of losing data sovereignty and security. 

Why data sovereignty is particularly important for Europe now

Data sovereignty means that companies can decide for themselves how, where and under what legal framework their data is stored and processed. US providers are subject to the Cloud Act - a law that grants US authorities access to stored data, even if it is physically located in Europe. This is a risk that is difficult to calculate, particularly for companies in critical infrastructure sectors such as energy, logistics, healthcare or the financial sector. This is even more problematic for the areas of public administration or the defence industry, especially in times when the threat of armed conflict is becoming increasingly present. 

In a geopolitically tense climate, there is a growing desire among companies and public authorities for technological independence and regional control over IT infrastructures - and thus for legally secure, transparent and sovereign data storage.

3 strategic approaches for more independence and data sovereignty

There are various approaches to reducing dependency on US hyperscalers. These range from cloud sourcing from Europe and hybrid architectures to current trends such as cloud repatriation and moving critical data or workloads back to your own data centre.

1. use of European cloud providers

One option is to switch to or add European cloud providers that are fully subject to European data protection law. Providers such as IONOS (Germany), Elastx (Sweden), Scaleway, OVHcloud (France) or Fuga Cloud (Netherlands) offer scalable, GDPR-compliant services - from infrastructure to platform solutions. Some of these providers are involved in initiatives such as GAIA-X, a European project to promote interoperable, transparent and sovereign data infrastructures. Even though GAIA-X is not a cloud platform itself, it helps to establish a network of trustworthy providers.

2. development of hybrid cloud models or multi-cloud strategies

However, a complete break with hyperscalers is not always possible or economically viable. Instead, many companies are opting for hybrid cloud models: sensitive data is stored locally or with a European provider, while less critical workloads continue to run in the public cloud.

Multi-cloud approaches, in which different providers are used for different tasks, also increase flexibility and minimise the risk of vendor lock-in. Consistent orchestration and integration of the environments - for example with tools such as Kubernetes or Terraform - is crucial here.

3. on-premises as the key to more control

An on-premises infrastructure with operation of servers and storage systems in the company's own data centre enables maximum control over data, security and compliance. It is particularly useful where

• highly sensitive data such as tax data, patient records, health or research data, corporate strategies and business results are processed,
  
• legal requirements from the European GDPR, IT security laws or industry-specific standards stipulate local data storage
  
• low latency times or high availability are critical, or
  
• long-term archiving without cloud dependency is required.
  

Modern on-premises solutions can be combined with cloud-native technologies such as containerisation, automation and API-based management - turning your own data centre into a ‘private cloud’ that can be flexibly expanded and controlled.

For which organisations on-premises solutions are particularly worthwhile

On-premises is not always the first step, but it is often a strategically smart one. Cloud models often appear more cost-efficient, especially in the initial phase or in the event of strong growth. Nevertheless, investing in your own infrastructure can be worthwhile in the long term - especially for organisations that rely on maximum control, security and compliance. For certain industries and requirements, on-premises offers decisive advantages - both technically and strategically:

• Public institutions and authorities that are subject to special legal requirements in terms of compliance and data protection.
• Medium-sized industrial companies that want to protect intellectual property and production data.
• Financial service providers and insurance companies, where regulatory requirements dominate.
• Healthcare providers for whom the handling of particularly sensitive personal data is an everyday occurrence.
• Research institutions and universities that rely on confidential data analyses.

Companies and public administrations benefit not only in terms of data sovereignty, data security and availability. The use of used software can lead to considerable savings of up to 70 per cent on ongoing licensing costs, especially for widely used standard software from Microsoft or Adobe.

On-premises advantage: savings of up to 70 per cent on used software

Does that sound interesting? PREO's licensing experts will be happy to advise you on the benefits of used software licences and calculate the financial savings potential for your company based on your current licence portfolio.

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Digital autonomy - data sovereignty becomes a strategic goal

Increasing geopolitical uncertainty and the growing desire for data protection and control are making data sovereignty a strategic goal. Reducing dependency on US hyperscalers does not necessarily mean completely turning away from modern cloud solutions - on the contrary: those who look at alternatives such as European cloud offerings, hybrid architectures and on-premises solutions today are creating flexibility, security and future viability.

In the coming months, company managers should therefore examine which workloads really belong in the cloud - and which do not. Data sovereignty is not a nice-to-have, but a business-critical factor in a world in which data policy is increasingly becoming geopolitics.

With PREO, you are relying on an experienced and reputable B2B provider

As one of the pioneers in the European trade in used software, PREO offers companies, organisations and public administrations a large selection of used volume licences at all times, in particular current and older program versions of standard software from market-leading manufacturers such as Microsoft, Adobe, VMware and Oracle. Whatever the need, with PREO customers have all the advantages on their side and benefit from

• High savings on ongoing licence costs of up to 70 percent compared to the respective new version.
     
  
• 100 per cent legally compliant and audit-proof licence acquisition with maximum transparency in all processing steps, including complete documentation in the PREO licence portal ‘Easy Compliance’.
  
  
• Personal advice on all questions relating to licence transactions or the integration of used software licences in traditional network structures or hybrid cloud models.
  
  
• existing software licence management capacities for large IT infrastructure projects with thousands of workstations and cross-border locations.
  
  
• more sustainability in the IT sector by promoting an active circular economy and reducing the company's CO2 footprint. Speaking of sustainability: PREO is the only retailer of used software with a current scorecard listed by EcoVadis, the world's largest provider of sustainability ratings.
  
  
• The expertise from numerous reference projects that PREO has already successfully realised for well-known companies from various industries and sectors.

Enquire now free of charge