AWS Announces CISPE Membership and Compliance with First-Ever Code of Conduct for Data Protection in the Cloud

September 7, 2023: We updated the CISPE Code of Conduct link. Please refer to this page for the updated info: CISPE Code of Conduct

I have two exciting announcements today, both showing AWS’s continued commitment to ensuring that customers can comply with EU Data Protection requirements when using our services.

AWS and CISPE

First, I’m pleased to announce AWS’s membership in the Association of Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers in Europe (CISPE).

CISPE is a coalition of about twenty cloud infrastructure (also known as Infrastructure as a Service) providers who offer cloud services to customers in Europe. CISPE was created to promote data security and compliance within the context of cloud infrastructure services. This is a vital undertaking: both customers and providers now understand that cloud infrastructure services are very different from traditional IT services (and even from other cloud services such as Software as a Service). Many entities were treating all cloud services as the same in the context of data protection, which led to confusion on both the part of the customer and providers with regard to their individual obligations.

One of CISPE’s key priorities is to ensure customers get what they need from their cloud infrastructure service providers in order to comply with the new EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). With the publication of its Data Protection Code of Conduct for Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers, CISPE has already made significant progress in this space.

AWS and the Code of Conduct

My second announcement is in regard to the CISPE Code of Conduct itself. I’m excited to inform you that today, AWS has declared that Amazon EC2, Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3), Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS), AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM), AWS CloudTrail, and Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) are now fully compliant with the aforementioned CISPE Code of Conduct. This provides our customers with additional assurances that they fully control their data in a safe, secure, and compliant environment when they use AWS. Our compliance with the Code of Conduct adds to the long list of internationally recognized certifications and accreditations AWS already has, including ISO 27001, ISO 27018, ISO 9001, SOC 1, SOC 2, SOC 3, PCI DSS Level 1, and many more.

Additionally, the Code of Conduct is a powerful tool to help our customers who must comply with the EU GDPR.

A few key benefits of the Code of Conduct include:

• Clarifying who is responsible for what when it comes to data protection: The Code of Conduct explains the role of both the provider and the customer under the GDPR, specifically within the context of cloud infrastructure services.
• The Code of Conduct sets out what principles providers should adhere to: The Code of Conduct develops key principles within the GDPR about clear actions and commitments that providers should undertake to help customers comply. Customers can rely on these concrete benefits in their own compliance and data protection strategies.
• The Code of Conduct gives customers the security information they need to make decisions about compliance: The Code of Conduct requires providers to be transparent about the steps they are taking to deliver on their security commitments. To name but a few, these steps involve notification around data breaches, data deletion, and third-party sub-processing, as well as law enforcement and governmental requests. Customers can use this information to fully understand the high levels of security provided.

I’m proud that AWS is now a member of CISPE and that we’ve played a part in the development of the Code of Conduct. Due to the very specific considerations that apply to cloud infrastructure services, and given the general lack of understanding of how cloud infrastructure services actually work, there is a clear need for an association such as CISPE. It’s important for AWS to play an active role in CISPE in order to represent the best interests of our customers, particularly when it comes to the EU Data Protection requirements.

AWS has always been committed to enabling our customers to meet their data protection needs. Whether it’s allowing our customers to choose where in the world they wish to store their content, obtaining approval from the EU Data Protection authorities (known as the Article 29 Working Party) of the AWS Data Processing Addendum and Model Clauses to enable transfers of personal data outside Europe, or simply being transparent about the way our services operate, we work hard to be market leaders in the area of security, compliance, and data protection.

Our decision to participate in CISPE and its Code of Conduct sends a clear a message to our customers that we continue to take data protection very seriously.