As concerns over data sovereignty grow, governments worldwide are moving beyond simple data residency to demand greater control over their information. The focus is shifting towards encryption practices, specifically end-to-end encryption, to ensure that sensitive government data remains truly under their control, regardless of where it is stored or processed.

Government Calls for Enhanced Data Control

Last week, Privatim, a coalition of Swiss local government data protection officers, urged authorities to avoid using international SaaS solutions for sensitive data unless those platforms implement comprehensive end-to-end encryption. They highlighted platforms like Microsoft 365 as examples that fall short, noting that most SaaS providers do not offer true encryption that prevents access to plaintext data by the provider itself.

This stance underscores a growing concern that relying on third-party cloud providers can lead to significant loss of control over government data, weakening the concept of sovereignty and exposing data to potential access by foreign entities or legal processes.

Global Shift Toward Technical Sovereignty

Security analysts emphasize that when cloud providers retain the ability to decrypt data, the notion of data sovereignty is compromised. Sanchit Vir Gogia of Greyhound Research explained that any decryption capability, whether through legal mandates like the US CLOUD Act or internal mechanisms, undermines true sovereignty.

This perspective is echoed across Europe, where authorities in Germany, France, Denmark, and the European Commission are voicing concerns about the neutrality of foreign-owned hyperscalers. Switzerland’s explicit rejection of cloud solutions lacking end-to-end encryption emphasizes the increasing importance of technical sovereignty controls in regulatory frameworks.

As governments recognize the limitations of geographic data residency alone, they are calling for transparency and control over encryption practices, technical implementations, and third-party access — essential steps toward ensuring data remains under national or organizational sovereignty.

Inspired by

• https://www.computerworld.com/article/4098599/end-to-end-encryption-is-next-frontline-in-governments-data-sovereignty-war-with-hyperscalers-2.html

Sources

• privatim.ch
• infoworld.com
• cio.com
• cio.com