Cloud Act: When digital sovereignty becomes hostage to the United States

In the 21st century hyperconnected world, sovereignty is no longer just a matter of physical boundaries. Today, controlling data flows, digital platforms and technological infrastructures has become as strategic as controlling the territory.

It is in this new field of dispute that the Cloud Actacronym for Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act (Clarification Law on the legal use of data abroad, in free translation). It is a United States law that allows the government to access data stored outside its territory, provided they are under the control of companies based on US territory.

Which, at first glance, may seem a measure of legal certainty, in practice it represents a silent expansion of US power over global internet. By expanding its jurisdiction to servers and information from other countries, the Cloud Act It imposes a new form of digital influence, which directly compromises the informational autonomy of other nations.

Explaining the Cloud Act: What is it and how it works?

O Cloud Act It was approved in the United States in 2018 with the argument of modernizing laws on access to digital data in criminal investigations. In practice, it allows the US government to require access to data stored on servers outside US territory as long as they are under the control of US companies such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Meta.

This means that even if a data is physically stored on a server located in Brazil, Germany or India, it is enough that it is linked to one of these companies so that it can be accessed by US authorities by simple court order. That is, the physical location of the information is no longer relevant, what matters is the nationality of the company that controls this data.

In addition, as the large technological corporations that dominate the global internet are mostly based in the US, the application of Cloud Act It is not an exception: it is the rule. Most data in the world, personal, corporate or even governmental, circulates by services related to these companies. This gives the United States an unprecedented informational advantage, consolidating a new type of power: the power to access and control alien data under its own legal justification.

O Cloud Act It is not just a technical law on data access. It represents a silent geopolitical leap: a way to broaden the influence of the United States on the digital world without having to send troops, firm treaties or establish bases. An American judicial subpoena is enough for information stored in other countries to be under Washington control. This, by itself, already characterizes a form of digital legal imperialism.

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Imbalance is even more evident when considering the central role of big techs American. Companies such as Microsoft, Google and Amazon control much of the global cloud infrastructure, including datacers located in Global Southern countries. This means that a huge amount of sensitive information, from common users to government agencies, can be accessed without consultation or authorization from host countries. It is a game in which data circulate globally, but the authority remains concentrated in the US.

Not by chance, several nations have shown discomfort with this arrangement. The European Union raised concerns about conflicts between the Cloud Act and their own data protection standards. India has reacted with laws that require the local storage of sensitive information. And other countries begin to discuss similar measures. Still, the impact of US legislation remains deep, especially where digital infrastructure is still dominated by foreign platforms.

For global southern countries, the effects of Cloud Act They are even deeper and more worrying. Unlike large digital powers, which have their own infrastructure and ability to impose robust regulations, many developing nations depend on foreign technological solutions to operate their communication, governance and even public safety systems. This dependence creates a scenario in which strategic data from citizens, companies and institutions are at the constant risk of being accessed by foreign authorities without any sovereign mediation. It is no longer just about paying for a service, but to give in indirect control over sensitive information.

In addition, the absence of national data protection policies, or the fragility of those that exist, makes these countries even more exposed. Many do not have legal frameworks capable of resisting the extraterritoriality of the Cloud Actnor technological infrastructure to store and process data internally. The result is a dependence cycle that reinforces historical asymmetries: while data circulates freely, power remains concentrated on the same poles as usual.

These are not technophobia or digital protectionism. It is a matter of recognizing that, in the information age, those who control data control decisions, behaviors and political directions. The debate on the Cloud ActTherefore, it is more than legal or technical, being a symbol of the way digital power has been exercised in the world: centralized, asymmetrical and often invisible.

To admit this rule of the game is to accept that our informational autonomy is conditioned by foreign interests. It is allowing data from governments, companies and citizens to be exploited without proper national control.

Finally, in a scenario of technological disputes and redefinition of the international order, digital sovereignty is not a luxury, it is a necessity. React to Cloud Act It is the first step in building alternatives, strengthening its own legal frameworks, developing local infrastructure and rethinking how we position ourselves in global cybers. Because, in the end, those who do not control their data, do not control their destination either.

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