Digital sovereignty: do you know who manages your personal data?

Digital sovereignty. A term that’s been floating around the digital landscape for years, but one that hasn’t been seriously considered within many organisations during those same years. But why not, actually? And why is it precisely important to start engaging with it?

I’d dare to bet part of my salary on it that you don’t know where your data is located online and who actually has control over it. In fact, the chance that you’ve even thought about this before is already pretty small. That’s not so strange either, because everyone does it anyway, right? Just putting everything with big tech companies because it’s easy, accessible and cheap?

I understand that too. Convenience and cost savings are two important selling points in any commercial situation. But this does mean we’re all blindly giving away our data to big parties. And you know just as little as I do what happens with that data. This does raise the question though: who actually owns your digital world?

What is digital sovereignty?

Before we can dive deeper into the topic, it’s important that we have an idea of what digital sovereignty means. If we ask Google for the meaning of the word, Google tells us the following: “Digital sovereignty is the ability of organisations and governments to retain full authority and control over their own data, software and digital infrastructure.”. Is it clear to you now?

In effect, digital sovereignty means you decide yourself where data is stored and which legislation applies. Take our hosting, for example. When you have your email or your website hosted with us, this is done from beautiful Groningen. Nice and close, in our own Netherlands. This means that as an organisation, you’re less dependent on foreign tech giants or jurisdictions. A dependency no organisation wants.

Digital sovereignty in the spotlight

Why we’re all only now feeling the pressure to actually do something with it has everything to do with a number of developments in the online landscape. Take the geopolitical shifts as an example. Within the EU, there’s a growing desire to remain strategically autonomous in a world with increasing tensions. We’re increasingly realising it’s necessary to remain, or become, independent from large foreign organisations.

Independence is definitely already a true keyword within digital sovereignty. We feel the urge to distance ourselves from the big tech companies, of which we don’t know everything they do with our data. That independence gives us control back over our own digital world. Control that’s important to safeguard security and maintain business continuity.

In addition, we also have the problem of increasing cyber threats. The number of reports of data breaches, ransomware and digital sabotage is increasing rapidly. This is a reality that many organisations, but also many individuals, are actually not yet ready for at all. All the more reason to think carefully about the security of your data.

Why digital sovereignty is important for your organisation too

So far it’s still a lot of theory, right? A lot of text, a lot of explanation and a lot of words that might mean nothing at all to you. The only thing you’re really interested in is what digital sovereignty can deliver for your organisation. That’s why I’m happy to take you through the three most important benefits:

Security and compliance

Security alone should already be reason enough to at least consider investing in digital sovereignty. Cyber threats are increasing and data protection legislation for businesses and consumers is becoming ever stricter, yet almost no one has control over their own data. A bit skewed, don’t you think?

By maintaining control over your own data processing and storing data within your own geographical region, you as an organisation can reduce the risk of unauthorised access to sensitive information. Do you have control yourself? Then you’re also more likely to comply with local data protection legislation. This way, you ensure yourself that you avoid hefty financial fines related to data breaches.

Flexible in your processes

Having control means being independent. Yes, here I go again with an argument about the importance of independence. Independence that ensures your entire organisation doesn’t fall flat when a worldwide problem arises at that one big tech company. Independence that gives you the ability to continue important operations, even when all your competitors are sitting still. Businesses that already focused on digital sovereignty earlier are better able to adapt in urgent situations.

Control over your own digital infrastructure gives you the ability to respond faster to operational issues, limiting downtime and preserving the continuity of your business processes.

Enabling innovation

Digital sovereignty could easily be a very important link for innovation in your region. When you and your organisation stimulate local tech industries, you create the opportunity for developing advanced technologies tailored to local needs and regulations.

What does this deliver for you? Broad economic growth in your region through the application of these innovations. Moreover, businesses that commit to strong digital sovereignty have a better competitive position in the market. It’s namely easier to quickly develop and implement unique digital solutions when you’re not dependent on imported technologies.

The challenges of digital sovereignty

Complete digital sovereignty is the ideal, but just like behind every other ideal, there’s a complicated reality behind digital sovereignty too. Take, for example, the technical challenge of building and maintaining an independent digital infrastructure. Do you have experience with it? And don’t forget you also need to take cybersecurity into account, because the fines for data breaches aren’t light.

Navigating the tightened regulations around data goes further, though, than just watching out for a data breach. To find your way around this when setting up your own digital sovereignty, you need in-depth knowledge. In-depth knowledge you probably don’t (yet) have, and probably don’t have time to gather either.

You don’t need to be ashamed if you can’t do all this yourself, we of course have specialists for that. But those specialists do immediately bring a third challenge with them: the cost. Digital sovereignty namely requires a substantial investment. It naturally costs something to develop domestic technologies, and on the other hand you might also lose discounts by stepping away from global providers.

The opportunities of digital sovereignty

Fortunately, it’s not all problems and challenges. That would be a rather depressing note to end on. And as an entrepreneur, you’d rather look at opportunities than threats anyway, right?

One of the opportunities that’s discussed a bit less is the chance to position your organisation as a digital frontrunner. Especially in a time when the term digital sovereignty is so hip and happening, it’s nice to already be right in the middle of it as an organisation. You know what you’re doing on the online front, because you’re ahead of all your competitors. That sounds good!

In addition, I do have to refer back to the keyword again: independence. I can’t mention it often enough. Having complete control over your own data means you as an organisation stand many times stronger than when your sensitive data floats around everywhere and nowhere. You give yourself the ability to switch quickly in the event of any problems and prevent major issues in your critical business processes.

What does this concretely mean for your organisation?

So far, the bigger picture. Digital sovereignty will always remain a vague concept as long as you don’t translate it to your own organisation. It doesn’t all start with major technical interventions, but with conscious choices. Choices that determine how much control you actually have over your own digital world.

Map out your data

It always starts with insight. What data does your organisation collect? Where is it stored? And who has access to it, technically and legally? There’s a good chance these questions are also harder for you to answer than you’d hoped. Still, it’s important to create an overview of this here. No insight, no control, and no control, no sovereignty.

Analyse your dependencies

On which suppliers are you really dependent? And what are the consequences if a service completely falls away, the terms change or the legislation shifts? Digital sovereignty doesn’t mean you necessarily have to say goodbye to big tech companies, but it does mean you handle your choices consciously. Know where you’re vulnerable and where you need alternatives.

Set up governance and responsibility

Digital sovereignty isn’t a purely IT question. It touches on policy, compliance, risks and strategic decision-making. Record who’s responsible for data choices, infrastructure and suppliers. Make clear agreements about where data may be located and under which conditions. Only once this is supported at management level does digital sovereignty really gain meaning.

Make conscious choices in infrastructure

You can also take targeted steps on the technical front. Think of choosing European or local hosting partners, using open standards and designing portable systems. Not everything needs to change at once, but every choice that increases flexibility also strengthens your digital autonomy.

See digital infrastructure as a process

Digital sovereignty isn’t a final destination you reach and then leave behind. It’s a continuous balancing act between security, compliance, costs and innovation. Technology, legislation and geopolitics keep changing. Organisations that pay structural attention to this stay agile and future-proof.

Digital sovereignty in practice with Webba

At Webba, we believe digital sovereignty is mainly about sensible, well-considered choices. No castles in the air, no technical chest-thumping. Just knowing where your data is, who can access it and under which rules that happens.

That’s why we consciously choose solutions that bring control back to where it belongs. For example, we work with Nextcloud as a secure and transparent alternative to public cloud solutions. No unclear data flows, no hidden dependencies, but a platform where you remain the owner of your own data.

We also host all our websites and webmail ourselves, from Groningen. Just in our own country. This means data doesn’t quietly disappear across borders and always falls under Dutch and European legislation. It’s perhaps not the easiest route, but it’s a conscious one. And that’s exactly what digital sovereignty is about.

Ultimately, the core question is simple: are you consciously steering control over your digital world, or are you letting others determine it unnoticed? The answer to that question determines whether your organisation mainly reacts to digital developments, or actively shapes them itself. And that’s precisely the beauty of digital sovereignty: you have it all in your own hands.