Governmental Access to Data in the Cloud

This White Paper debunks the frequently-expressed assumption that the United States is alone in permitting governmental access to data for law enforcement or national security reasons. It examines the laws of ten countries, including the United States, with respect to governmental authorities’ ability to access data stored in or transmitted through the Cloud, and documents the similarities and differences among the various legal regimes. The White Paper reveals that every jurisdiction examined vests authority in the government to require a Cloud service provider to disclose customer data.

The White Paper also reveals that, unlike in the United States where the law specifically protects Cloud data from access by the government without legal process, data stored in the Cloud may be disclosed to governmental authorities voluntarily in some jurisdictions, without legal process and protections.

“As we said in the White Paper, our review reveals that businesses are misleading themselves and their customers if they contend that restricting Cloud service providers to one jurisdiction better insulates data from governmental access,” said Christopher Wolf, who is based in Hogan Lovells’ Washington, D.C. office. “It is incorrect to assume that the United States government’s access to data in the Cloud is greater than that of other advanced economies.”

“As part of the study reflected in the White Paper, we consulted on local law with lawyers on the ground in each of the countries we examined and with their input, we found that it is not possible to isolate data in the Cloud from governmental access by choosing a provider based on its physical location,” said Paris-based co-author Winston Maxwell, a partner in Hogan Lovells’ Privacy and Information Management practice group. “This is a critical finding that may directly impact businesses’ decisions related to Cloud storage.”

The paper examines governmental authority to access data in the Cloud in the following countries: Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Spain, United Kingdom, and the United States. It also includes a reference table that illustrates the varying levels of authority across the ten countries.

The paper is available for download here:
http://www.hldataprotection.com/uploads/file/Hogan%20Lovells%20White%20Paper%20Government%20Access%20to%20Cloud%20Data%20Paper%20%281%29.pdf

About Hogan Lovells’ Privacy and Information Management Practice
Hogan Lovells has one of the largest and most experienced Privacy and Information Management practices in the world, spanning the United States, the European Union, and Asia. The group assists clients with all of their compliance challenges, drafting policies and providing advice. According to Chambers & Partners, the team is "widely praised for its expertise in state, federal and EU privacy laws and operates across a wide range of sectors including media and healthcare."

About Hogan Lovells
Hogan Lovells is a leading global law firm providing business-oriented legal advice and high quality service across its exceptional breadth of practices to clients around the world.
“Hogan Lovells” or the “firm” is an international legal practice that includes Hogan Lovells US LLP and Hogan Lovells International LLP.
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