Microsoft to Store All European Personal Cloud Data Within EU for Confidentiality

Microsoft announced yesterday that it is upgrading its cloud technology service to allow customers to store all personal data within the European Union (EU) instead of sending it to the United States, where there is no national privacy law, reports AP.

These changes apply specifically to Azure, Microsoft 365, Power Platform, and Dynamics 365. In response to heightened requirements in the 27 countries of the EU, where strict data privacy laws apply, cloud technology companies are seeking to localize the storage and processing of customer data.

The EU and the US have long debated the data security of EU citizens, which tech companies store in the US, following the leak of documents by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden revealing that the US government was surveillance online data and communications.

Microsoft stated that its 'EU Data Boundary solution goes beyond European requirements.' The company had previously promised that customer data would not be moved outside the EU.

Last year, the company began storing and processing some data in Europe. Now, this service is expanding to all personal data, including pseudonymous data found in automated system logs generated during the operation of online services.

Later this year, Microsoft will also start storing technical support data in Europe. The company also plans to introduce a paid option for initial technical support response from the EU.

Last year, Amazon deployed an independent cloud infrastructure for the EU, aiming to comply with the stringent rules faced by digital companies and organizations in the public sector.

As previously reported by The Gaze, all major online platforms, including Google, Meta, Microsoft, and TikTok, that signed the Code of Practice against Russian disinformation, provided their second report to the EU on the implementation of this law.