Cloud Storage
ISO 27001
IONOS web hosting
Rethink IONOS Web Hosting: Secure Your Data with a Sovereign EU Cloud
Your IONOS web hosting is built for websites, but what about your critical backup and archive data? Sticking with traditional hosting could expose you to unpredictable costs and compliance risks.
Key Takeawys
True data sovereignty requires storage in EU-owned and operated data centers to ensure protection from foreign laws like the US CLOUD Act.
Eliminating egress fees and API call charges is the only way to achieve fully predictable cloud storage costs and avoid vendor lock-in.
Full S3 API compatibility allows for seamless integration with existing backup and archiving tools, protecting past investments and minimizing migration complexity.
Many businesses rely on IONOS web hosting for its convenience, but a different strategy is required for securing long-term data like backups and archives. The increasing complexity of data sovereignty, driven by regulations like GDPR, and the financial strain of unpredictable fees demand a specialized solution. Storing critical data in a standard hosting environment can create risks related to data residency and vendor lock-in. This article explores a modern approach: leveraging a sovereign, EU-based object storage platform to complement your existing infrastructure, ensuring compliance, cost predictability, and robust ransomware protection for your most valuable data assets.
Shift from Legacy Hosting to Sovereign Cloud Infrastructure
The demand for digital sovereignty in Europe is reshaping IT strategy, with over 84% of decision-makers calling it a critical factor in vendor selection. While traditional IONOS web hosting serves its purpose, storing sensitive backup and archive data requires adherence to stricter EU regulations. Relying on non-EU providers can create exposure to foreign laws like the CLOUD Act, a risk many businesses can no longer afford. A staggering 92% of European data currently resides in U.S.-controlled clouds, highlighting a major dependency.
A sovereign cloud, operated exclusively in European data centers under EU law, offers a direct solution. This EU-centric governance model provides the legal certainty needed for regulated workloads. By design, it ensures your data remains protected by GDPR, not just stored in a European location. Explore our GDPR-compliant IONOS alternatives to understand the benefits. This strategic shift is the first step toward aligning your data storage with modern compliance realities.
Eliminate Hidden Fees to Stabilize Cloud Budgets
A major pain point for businesses is the unpredictable nature of cloud costs, particularly the egress fees charged for moving data. These charges, often called the 'Hotel California effect,' can make switching providers or accessing your own data prohibitively expensive, with costs ranging from 5 to 20 cents per GB. Many companies feel locked into their providers due to this pricing complexity, hindering both flexibility and financial planning. This model directly impacts your ability to manage budgets effectively.
A predictable pricing model eliminates these variables entirely. Imagine a storage solution with absolutely no egress fees or API call costs. This approach provides complete cost transparency, allowing for precise budget forecasting. Here is how a predictable model transforms your operational expenses:
Zero egress fees means you can access or move your data anytime without penalty.
No API call charges encourage automation and integration without fear of surprise bills.
No minimum storage duration provides flexibility for short-term and long-term projects.
Transparent, flat-rate pricing simplifies budget allocation for your entire team.
This transparent economic model is detailed in our analysis of IONOS cloud pricing structures. Adopting such a model removes financial barriers and restores control over your IT spending.
Integrate Existing Tools Seamlessly with a 100% S3-Compatible API
The transition to a new storage platform should not require a complete overhaul of your existing IT workflows. Full S3 API compatibility is the key to a smooth integration, ensuring your current applications, scripts, and tools continue to function without code rewrites. This protects your past technology investments, which can account for thousands of euros, and minimizes migration risk by over 90%. European providers like Exoscale and others have adopted this standard for this reason.
This out-of-the-box integration extends to leading backup software, a critical component for any disaster recovery plan. For instance, our collaboration with NovaBackup highlights how seamless S3 compatibility enables MSPs to deliver compliant and reliable backup services. The ability to connect your existing infrastructure with just a one-line code change is a powerful advantage. You can learn more in our IONOS migration guide. This ensures your operations remain uninterrupted while you enhance your storage capabilities.
Implement Immutable Backups to Reduce Ransomware Risk
Ransomware remains a top threat, with international surveys showing around 50% of companies in countries like Germany and France were targeted in recent months. Standard web hosting environments are not purpose-built to defend against these sophisticated attacks. A critical defense layer is immutable storage, which makes your backup data unchangeable and undeletable for a specified period. This feature is a core component of modern ransomware protection strategies.
Immutable storage with Object Lock creates a WORM (Write-Once-Read-Many) state for your backups. Even if attackers gain access to your credentials, they cannot encrypt or delete the protected data until the lock expires. This guarantees you have a clean recovery point. Key elements of this defense include:
Regularly backing up all critical data to an external, immutable location.
Isolating infected systems immediately to prevent the ransomware from spreading.
Using Object Lock to set retention policies that align with compliance needs.
Testing your restore process from immutable backups at least twice per year.
This proactive approach transforms your backups from a simple copy into a secure vault. For more on this, see our guide to IONOS data security. Implementing immutability is a non-negotiable step in building a resilient IT infrastructure.
Prepare for 2025 EU Regulations with Compliant-Ready Storage
The European regulatory landscape is evolving, with two key directives set to impact data management significantly. The EU Data Act, applicable from September 12, 2025, mandates data portability and interoperability to prevent vendor lock-in. It requires cloud providers to offer a clear exit path, including metadata and access information. This empowers customers to switch providers without facing technical or financial penalties, a core principle of the act.
Simultaneously, the NIS-2 Directive enhances cybersecurity requirements, focusing on supply chain security and continuous risk management. It compels organizations to assess the cybersecurity practices of their suppliers, making your choice of a cloud storage provider a direct compliance issue. A storage platform designed in Europe is built with these regulations in mind. Our infrastructure supports these mandates through:
EU Data Act Readiness: We provide open standards and exportable formats, ensuring a proven exit strategy.
NIS-2 Alignment: Our operations include continuous security processes and vulnerability management.
GDPR by Design: We operate exclusively in certified EU data centers with country-level geofencing.
Immutable Storage: Object Lock supports audit-ready data retention for compliance.
By choosing a compliant-ready provider, you turn regulatory obligations into a competitive advantage. Dive deeper into IONOS GDPR compliance considerations. This forward-looking approach ensures your business is prepared for the future of EU data governance.
Drive MSP Profitability with a Zero-Egress Partner Platform
For Managed Service Providers (MSPs), profitability hinges on predictable margins and operational efficiency. Traditional cloud storage models with fluctuating egress and API fees make it difficult to price services like Backup-as-a-Service (BaaS) competitively. A zero-egress model, however, provides the financial stability needed to build defensible margins, with some MSPs reporting cost stabilization of up to 30%.
A partner-ready platform is designed specifically to help MSPs scale their business. Features like a multi-tenant console with role-based access control (RBAC), automation via API/CLI, and integrated reporting tools streamline management and reduce administrative overhead by at least 25%. This allows MSPs to onboard new clients faster and manage multiple tenants from a single interface. Recent distribution agreements with partners like api in Germany and Northamber plc in the UK further expand local access for resellers. This ecosystem is built to support partner growth, as detailed in our analysis of IONOS alternatives. Such a partnership empowers MSPs to deliver superior value to their clients.
More Links
European Commission outlines the European strategy for data, focusing on enabling the data economy.
European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) provides a Cloud Security Guide specifically for SMEs.
Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) offers tables and statistics on cloud computing usage in German enterprises.
Gaia-X provides information about its initiative for a European data infrastructure.
European Data Protection Board (EDPB) presents the EU Cloud Code of Conduct document.
Bitkom offers its Cloud Report 2024, likely containing charts and analysis of cloud adoption in Germany.
FAQ
Is Impossible Cloud compatible with my existing backup software?
Yes. Our platform offers 100% S3 API compatibility, which means it integrates out-of-the-box with leading backup and archiving tools that support the S3 protocol. You can connect your existing software by changing just the endpoint URL, ensuring a seamless transition without rewriting scripts or workflows.
What does 'no egress fees' actually mean?
It means you will never be charged for moving your data out of our cloud. Whether you are restoring a backup, migrating to another service, or sharing data with a third party, there are zero data transfer costs. This provides complete cost predictability and eliminates a major financial barrier to accessing your own data.
How does geofencing help with GDPR compliance?
Geofencing ensures your data is physically and legally stored within a predefined geographic region, such as Germany or Austria, and never leaves it. This is a technical guarantee that helps you meet the strict data residency requirements of GDPR and other industry-specific regulations, providing proof that your data is governed exclusively by EU law.
What is immutable storage and how does it stop ransomware?
Immutable storage, enabled via S3 Object Lock, makes your data unchangeable and undeletable for a duration you define. When you store a backup, it becomes a write-once-read-many (WORM) file. Even if ransomware compromises your system, it cannot encrypt or delete these immutable backups, guaranteeing you have a clean version of your data for recovery.
Is this a replacement for my IONOS web hosting?
No, our service is a specialized object storage solution designed to complement your existing hosting. While IONOS is excellent for running websites and applications, our platform is purpose-built for unstructured data like backups, archives, and media assets that require high durability, sovereignty, and predictable costs.
How do I migrate my data from another S3-compatible provider?
Migration is straightforward due to our full S3 API compatibility. You can use any S3-compatible tool, script, or client to move your data. The process typically involves updating the endpoint, access key, and secret key in your existing tools to point to our service. We also provide documentation and support to guide you through the process.
