Dutch Tax Office Dumps Microsoft 365 Over US Data Fears

The Dutch tax office was halfway through moving 5,000 employees to Microsoft 365 when it hit the brakes. In June, a government IT review warned that the cloud setup didn't protect confidential documents well enough. Specifically, it worried that sensitive data would flow through American servers and that Microsoft's standard encryption didn't give the government full control. By July, the rollout was paused; now it's officially canceled.

This isn't just about one agency. Across Europe, governments are rethinking their reliance on US tech giants. The Linux Foundation reports that 94% of EU organizations say digital sovereignty—keeping data and software under local control—is important. Switzerland's military, Germany, France, and Austria have all started switching to Linux and open-source alternatives. The Dutch government is even developing its own "Digital Autonomous Work Environment" for all agencies.

For now, the tax office will keep using Microsoft Outlook for email, but by 2027 it plans to move email and calendars to private servers. Later, it will adopt European open-source tools for file storage and teamwork. No specific products have been chosen yet, but the direction is clear: less dependence on American cloud providers.

So what does this mean for you? If you use Microsoft 365 at work, your data might also be subject to US laws. This move signals that governments are waking up to that risk. It could lead to more choices in secure, local software—and maybe even better privacy for everyone.