Do you know why you need a local cloud?

The acceleration of digital transformation has led to a corresponding increase in the collection and storage of all kinds of personal and business data. However, the laws governing where this data can and cannot reside along with various mandated controls are complex and ever-changing depending on which country and industry you do business in.

In the UAE, for example, data protection laws require all sensitive data – such as financial, medical or personal information – should not be hosted outside the country. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has its own very strict laws and countries such as Oman, Bahrain and Qatar are currently exploring new laws around data sovereignty. If you operate in an industry where you have any personal data of your customers, such as in; Healthcare, Insurance, or Finance; Data Residency should be high on your list of considerations when moving to the cloud.
A failure to protect data and prevent it from being exported carries hefty penalties across the region. The heaviest penalties require an organization in breach of data regulations to pay heavy fines, but heavier sentences are also within the laws’ remit.

This is just one important reason as to why BIOS has built out a cloud across the GCC with footprints in the UAE (Dubai and Abu Dhabi), The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Riyadh and Jeddah) and Oman (Muscat) and is in the process of expanding to the rest of the GCC in 2021. In addition, we have spent considerable time and money on legal resources to understand all the unique laws relating to Data and IT controls by industry in the GCC so we can guide our customers correctly.

If you would like to know of data sovereignty laws that might apply to your business and if they do how we can help you still move to the cloud, contact us today!