Miguel De Bruycker, director of the Centre for Cybersecurity Belgium (CCB), told that Europe’s digital infrastructure is overwhelmingly dependent on U.S. tech giants — particularly cloud providers and data platforms. According to him, this dominance means:
This dependency limits Europe’s ability to build sovereign cybersecurity defenses and innovate at the scale required to compete globally. Europe lacks control over its critical digital infrastructure, including data storage and cloud computing capabilities.
Even data held physically in the EU can fall under foreign legal jurisdiction, due to laws like the U.S. Cloud Act and FISA 702, which can compel access to data irrespective of where it’s stored.
The Meaning Behind the Warning
When officials say Europe has “lost the internet,” they are pointing to a structural imbalance. Much of Europe’s digital backbone — cloud platforms, data storage, content delivery, and cybersecurity tooling — is dominated by non-European providers, primarily from the United States.
Even when European data is stored physically within the continent, the companies operating the infrastructure often fall under foreign legal jurisdictions. This creates a situation where strategic autonomy is limited, and decision-making power over critical digital assets lies beyond European borders.
Cloud Dependence and Concentrated Power
Today, most European governments, institutions, and enterprises rely on a small group of hyperscale cloud providers:
- Amazon Web Services
- Microsoft Azure
- Google Cloud
These platforms offer scale, reliability, and innovation that European alternatives have struggled to match. But this dominance comes at a cost. It concentrates operational control, pricing power, and technical standards in the hands of a few foreign corporations, reducing Europe’s ability to act independently in times of crisis or geopolitical tension.
Why Digital Sovereignty Matters
Digital sovereignty is not about isolation or rejecting global technology. It is about ensuring that a region retains meaningful control over its critical systems — from public administration and healthcare to energy grids and defense.
For the European Union, this means:
- Ensuring sensitive data is protected from external political or legal pressure
- Maintaining operational continuity during diplomatic or economic disputes
- Preserving the ability to set and enforce its own digital rules and standards
Without these capabilities, Europe risks becoming a digital consumer rather than a digital decision-maker.
Cybersecurity Risks Beyond Politics
The sovereignty issue is tightly linked to cybersecurity. Dependence on external platforms limits transparency and oversight, making it harder to fully audit systems or respond independently to cyber incidents.
At the same time, fragmented cybersecurity practices across European institutions — combined with increasing threats from state-sponsored actors and cybercriminal groups — expose structural weaknesses. Control over infrastructure is not a silver bullet, but without it, defensive resilience is harder to achieve.
Europe’s Push to Reclaim Control
Europe has not been idle. Policymakers and regulators are increasingly focused on:
- Building regional cloud and data-sharing initiatives
- Encouraging open-source and interoperable technologies
- Strengthening cybersecurity standards across member states
- Investing in homegrown digital infrastructure and talent
However, rebuilding sovereignty in the digital realm is a long-term effort. Decades of market consolidation and underinvestment cannot be reversed quickly, especially when competing against global tech giants with massive resources.
A Defining Moment for Europe’s Digital Future
The statement that Europe has “lost the internet” is not a declaration of defeat — it is a warning. It highlights a gap between Europe’s regulatory ambitions and its technological reality.
Whether Europe can close that gap will define its role in the global digital order. The choice is not between cooperation and independence, but between strategic dependence and strategic resilience. The internet may be global, but control over its foundations remains a matter of power — and Europe is now deciding how much of that power it wants to reclaim.
