Cloudy day

Two topics are swirling around my brain tonight, cloud and data privacy, and they both meet at the intersection of money.

Obviously, this is Data Privacy Week and depending on when you read this it might be Data Protection Day, so the theme is both timely and important. On the other side, while the Brivo/Eagle Eye/merger is still fresh in my mind, I am looking at the importance of that data protection viewed through the lens of physical security integrated with cloud services.

Unified cloud platforms have the benefit of ease of use when it comes to securing data. User management, automated patching, consistent encryption standards, all the attractive features that make it easier for integrators to support customers. However, the easy route for platform management might be out the window in favor of stricter data security controls, according to some industry experts.

“In 2026, the organizations that lead on data privacy will be the ones that diversify deliberately, build for control instead of convenience, and stop assuming that the biggest provider is automatically the safest choice,” said Roger Brulotte, CEO, Leaseweb Canada, as he takes aim at Hyperscalers (AWS, Google, Microsoft)

Brulotte and his U.S. counterpart Richard Copeland advocate companies stretching their data around multiple cloud services and building for control instead of convenience, arguing that the best method for data protection is to limit the actual harm suffered in the event of a breach.

But are those costs that companies are willing to bear in an incredible volatile financial environment? Is it something they can afford to ignore?

Integrator roles are shifting from maintaining system uptime as a measure of success to how well those systems protect user data over their lifecycle. At the eye of the storm is AI driving change forward. What the landscape looks like, or what it will cost when it’s done, is anyone’s guess.