As UK public sector bodies, financial institutions, and enterprises accelerate cloud adoption, a pivotal question emerges: Who truly controls your data, and under which laws?
With data breaches and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, storing data and workloads in a host country alone doesn't guarantee sovereignty. U.S. laws like the CLOUD Act (Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data) and FISA Section 702 (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Section 702) can reach across borders, silently bypassing national protections. For organizations handling sensitive citizen data, financial records, or national infrastructure, this isn’t just a compliance gap; it’s a sovereignty crisis.
“Businesses are waking up to the fact that without clear, reliable control over where their data resides—and who has access to it—they’re exposing themselves to unnecessary risk. The cloud needs to evolve to meet this new reality, and that means prioritising transparency, localised control, and trust at the very core of infrastructure.” - Mark Boost, CEO of Civo
The hyperscaler illusion: Why "Sovereign Cloud" claims fail
Hyperscalers like Amazon AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud often market “sovereign cloud” as a compliance feature but a devastating admission from Microsoft France reveals the truth:
“No, I cannot guarantee French data won’t be seized by US authorities.” – Anton Carniaux, Director of Public & Legal Affairs, Microsoft France (Under oath before the French Senate, June 2025)
This isn’t a hypothetical risk. If Microsoft can’t protect French data under French law, how can any US provider guarantee sovereignty for UK NHS records, financial data, or critical infrastructure?
The CLOUD Act permits U.S. law enforcement to demand data stored anywhere by a U.S. controlled provider. Meanwhile, FISA Section 702 allows warrantless surveillance of non-U.S. citizens’ data under vague "national security" pretexts.
These laws override local jurisdiction and operate in secrecy. You won’t be notified, and your provider may be legally barred from telling you.
Why hyperscaler promises aren’t enough
Hyperscalers often make bold claims, that your data is sovereign, that encryption solves jurisdictional risk, and that their infrastructure can be trusted regardless of ownership. But these reassurances don’t hold up under scrutiny. Here’s why:
- 🔑 Encryption: If they manage your encryption keys, they can be compelled to hand over unencrypted data.
- 🌍 Local Subsidiaries: External Key Management (EKM) is often optional and still hosted by the U.S.-based entity.
- 🤖 Confidential Computing: While promising, it doesn’t protect metadata or remove legal obligations. Worse, it can lead to vendor lock-in via proprietary implementations.
Bottom line: No contract or "EU data region" can neutralise the CLOUD Act or FISA 702. If the provider is American-owned, your data is never fully out of reach.
The Hyperscaler vs. Civo reality
At Civo, sovereignty isn’t a bolt-on feature, it’s built into how we operate our UK regions. In our UK Sovereign Cloud, we are a UK-owned and UK-operated cloud provider, governed exclusively by British law. That means your data hosted in our UK regions is shielded from foreign jurisdictional overreach, where it matters most.
| Hyperscalers (AWS/Azure/Google) | Civo’s UK Sovereign Cloud |
|---|---|
| Subject to CLOUD Act & FISA 702 | Zero exposure to U.S. laws |
| Data stored in UK but legally accessible by U.S. agencies | Data physically + legally never exits UK |
| Optional encryption with hidden backdoors | Customer-managed keys & transparent controls |
| Proprietary tech causing vendor lock-ins | Open standards, no egress fees, no lock-in |
| Compliance managed via complex add-ons | Built-in compliance: ISO 27001, SOC 2, Cyber Essentials |
Where hyperscalers offer compromised sovereignty in certain regions, bound by U.S. law, Civo’s UK Sovereign Cloud delivers protection from foreign jurisdiction through UK ownership and operation. This isn’t just infrastructure, it’s autonomy engineered into every layer. When data sovereignty is non-negotiable, only Civo guarantees your cloud operates under British law alone.
The Sovereign Cloud for every UK workload
Whether you’re a government body deploying citizen services, a fintech handling regulated transactions, or an innovator training AI models, Civo delivers uncompromising sovereignty:
- Public Cloud: Managed Kubernetes and compute for agile, scalable workloads. All within UK borders.
- Private Cloud: Deploy on-prem with CivoStack Enterprise or FlexCore hardware, built for high-security sectors.
- Civo AI: Affordable, scalable AI infrastructure powered by NVIDIA GPUs. Sustainable, scalable, and UK-secure.
Own your data, control your future
In an age of rising cyber threats, shifting geopolitics, and increasing regulatory scrutiny, true sovereignty is non-negotiable. It’s the foundation of trust, compliance, and national security.
U.S. hyperscalers cannot escape the laws of their homeland. No matter where they build, they are still beholden to U.S. mandates. With Civo’s UK Sovereign Cloud, you’re choosing a cloud provider that puts UK law, transparency, and autonomy first.
Ready to eliminate foreign jurisdictional risk? Discover Civo's UK Sovereign Cloud.
Keep learning more about the importance of data sovereignty for your business with some of our resources:
