Amazon Launches Cloud Service in Europe to Comply with Stricter Privacy Regulations

Amazon is introducing a separate cloud service for Europe to address the stringent regulations faced by companies and the public sector in the European Union (EU).

Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, which will operate within Europe and offer the same level of security, availability, and performance as existing AWS regions. However, it will be independent from other regions. The cloud will enable customers to store all metadata within the EU and will have its own billing and usage metering systems.

Max Peterson, VP of Sovereign Cloud at AWS, stated, “The AWS European Sovereign Cloud reinforces our commitment to offering AWS customers the most advanced set of sovereignty controls, privacy safeguards, and security features available in the cloud.”

In 2020, the European Union’s top court invalidated a data sharing agreement called Privacy Shield due to concerns about transatlantic data protection. The court ruled that the agreement did not adequately prevent the US government from accessing user data. As a response to these concerns, Microsoft announced in 2021 that it would allow business and public sector customers in the EU to keep their cloud computing data within the bloc.

Amazon’s AWS adheres to 143 security standards and compliance certifications to help customers meet regulatory requirements. The company is collaborating with European regulators and national cybersecurity agencies to develop the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, ensuring that it meets additional data residency, operational autonomy, and resiliency needs in Europe.

Germany will be the first AWS Region within the AWS European Sovereign Cloud and will be accessible to all European customers. Only AWS employees residing in the EU will have control over the operations and support for the cloud service.

Claudia Plattner, president of the German Federal Office for Information Security, said, “The development of a European AWS cloud will make it much easier for many public sector organizations and companies with high data security and data protection requirements to use AWS services.”

AWS currently has eight regions in Europe, including Frankfurt, Ireland, London, Milan, Paris, Stockholm, Spain, and Zurich. The company plans to launch five more AWS regions in Canada, Germany, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Thailand.