Cloud Act and GDPR: why European companies need a European SaaS to protect their data

Did you know that the management software your marketing team uses could be sharing your brand's data with US authorities without anyone telling you? This is not a hypothetical scenario. It is the direct result of two US laws that affect thousands of European companies today: the Cloud Act and Section 702 of FISA.

If your company uses SaaS tools from American providers to manage packaging, artwork or brand assets — even if the servers are physically located in Europe — your data may be exposed. And most importantly, you may be violating GDPR without knowing it.

What is the Cloud Act and why does it affect your company?

The Cloud Act (Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act), passed in 2018, grants US authorities the power to demand data stored on any server in the world if the company managing it is under US jurisdiction. This includes European subsidiaries of American companies — and crucially, it can happen without notifying the government of the country where the data is stored.

Section 702 of FISA adds another layer of risk. It is the legal basis for the PRISM programme and authorises mass surveillance of non-US citizens. In 2024, its renewal extended these powers until 2026, allowing companies like Microsoft or Google to share European customers' data without a prior court order.

The legal dilemma facing European companies

Companies using American SaaS software face an unresolvable legal contradiction: if they comply with the Cloud Act and hand over data to US authorities, they are violating GDPR. If they refuse, they risk sanctions in the United States. GDPR requires that any data transfer to third countries guarantees a level of protection equivalent to European standards — something the Cloud Act directly undermines.

Three concrete types of risk

Access without a court order: US authorities can access your operational, design or commercial data without notifying you or requesting authorisation from a Spanish or European court. Industrial espionage: the Cloud Act can be used to access strategic information from European companies in commercial competition contexts. The NSA has publicly acknowledged these practices. GDPR fines: a company that surrenders data under the Cloud Act can be sanctioned by the data protection authority with up to 4% of its global annual turnover.

Why a European SaaS changes the equation entirely

Platforms developed and hosted in the European Union are not subject to the Cloud Act or FISA. Data is processed exclusively under European law, eliminating the legal conflict at its source.

MyMediaConnect is a 100% European graphic chain management platform, with infrastructure hosted in certified data centres in Germany and Finland (OVH, with full redundancy). No foreign authority can access your operational data without European judicial authorisation, all data processing fully complies with GDPR, and granular access control lets you define exactly who can see what, with complete traceability.