Why data sovereignty should be a strategic priority for UK businesses
"Organisations need to say compliant, protect their data and futureproof digital infrastructure as the deployment of AI services gathers pace."
In recent years, data sovereignty laws have been strengthened as governments attempt to ensure that digital data is protected and that privacy standards are upheld.
Data is subject to the laws and regulations of the country or region in which it is collected, stored or processed, meaning that organisations must comply with the data protection laws and regulations of that jurisdiction, even if they operate internationally. Therefore, to comply with data sovereignty laws, UK companies must ensure their data handling practices align with both UK and international regulations.
However, maintaining compliance with data sovereignty laws is becoming a top concern for UK organisations with workloads in the cloud. These worries have been prompted by the continued rise of geopolitical volatility combined with unease around the broad powers granted by the US CLOUD Act. In short, UK IT leaders fear that US-based cloud giants could be compelled to disclose corporate or personal data to US authorities. That includes providers such as Microsoft, Google and Amazon that offer sovereign cloud services.
As a result, data sovereignty now represents a top strategic priority for UK businesses that want to stay compliant, protect their data from foreign interference and futureproof their digital infrastructure – especially as the deployment of AI services gathers pace.
The cloud data sovereignty conundrum
The jurisdictional complexities of global cloud services mean that the real-world implications of digital data sovereignty compliance can often involve navigating multiple regulatory regimes.
In response to a growing focus on data sovereignty issues, many hyperscale cloud providers have introduced sovereign cloud services that keep data physically stored within a specific country or region. In theory, a sovereign cloud infrastructure gives organisations control over where their data is stored (its residency), ensuring that it stays within national or regional borders, does not cross borders without appropriate consent or a legal basis and is protected against foreign access.
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However, many UK IT leaders are now questioning if the promise of control offered by sovereign clouds is an absolute certainty. Because if a cloud provider is headquartered in the US and subject to US jurisdiction, then the CLOUD Act means their cloud data could be exposed to US authorities.
IT leaders and decision-makers are reconsidering the technologies they rely on and are turning to next-generation solutions, such as hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI), to reduce their dependence on external cloud providers and avoid associated jurisdictional risks.
HCI: a smarter approach to data sovereignty compliance
Providing a way for UK businesses to have the best of both worlds – the control of data sovereignty of on-premises infrastructure combined with the scalability of cloud – HCI solutions feature built-in security features like encrypted data at rest and in transit, as well as access control mechanisms that can be configured to meet specific jurisdictional compliance requirements.
Combining computing, networking and storage resources into a single integrated solution that organisations can deploy on their own servers, HCI gives organisations the option of running workloads entirely on-premises or leveraging hybrid cloud computing for specific needs. In addition to offering organisations complete control over where their data is stored, HCI also enables organisations to process data closer to its source.
By doing so, organisations can minimise data transference across borders while retaining specific data on-premises for compliance purposes. It also enables organisations to initiate hybrid cloud strategies featuring both public and private cloud and facilitate application mobility and data governance across all multiple different environments.
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Embracing a hybrid approach enables UK organisations to tailor their application and storage strategies, running workloads where it makes the most sense. For example, with HCI applications can be run and data securely stored on-premises with connections to the cloud or the data centre being delivered as and when required. This ensures that organisations can take advantage of public and private cloud services for selected workloads and use HCI’s localised deployment options to keep data within a specific country or region and gain granular control over data access, movement and storage.
In essence, HCI allows organisations to adapt their infrastructure to reduce their dependence on external cloud providers and initiate hybrid multi-cloud architectures that will enable them to meet evolving data sovereignty requirements with minimal disruption.
Preparing for a more agile and compliant future
HCI plays a crucial role in enabling organisations to pursue a hybrid-first infrastructure approach and tailor their infrastructure choices to the specific demands of individual workloads. With data sovereignty regulations increasing year on year, UK businesses need to be certain they can protect their data and move it where it’s needed.
With HCI underpinning their hybrid cloud strategies, organisations can deploy the compute, networking and storage capabilities they need in each location and connect these locations using physical and virtual connectivity that is fast and secure. In a world where the regulatory landscape is evolving fast, processing and transferring data while meeting compliance needs is a priority. Implementing HCI as part of a hybrid cloud strategy will ensure organisations can use private infrastructure for sensitive workloads and hands the control back over to the organisation, allowing them to retain clear oversight and control over their data.
Bruce Kornfeld is Chief Product Officer at StorMagic
