The Rise of Data Localisation
Global expansion of IoT deployments presents enterprises with complex regulatory demands concerning data handling and routing. For global enterprises, “home-routed” roaming, the long-standing standard where data is tunnelled back to a central home network before reaching its destination, is no longer a viable long-term strategy. International regulations concerning IoT data sovereignty and the flow of cross-border data payload traffic have tightened, driving this change.
Markets such as Brazil, China, India, and Turkey have already established strict mandates regarding data localisation and in-country processing, some of which effectively prohibit cross-border traffic for certain types of data. Therefore, it is unsurprising that enterprises are prioritising data localisation. A 2024 survey of 1,000 enterprises and OEMs (conducted by Kaleido Intelligence) found 37% of respondents reported that the top capability lacking in their current IoT ecosystem is flexibility regarding compliance and data governance.
The business impacts of these data localisation regulations are significant. Currently, only 2% of the market for IoT connectivity requires domestic-only support, meaning 98% of enterprises must navigate these complex international regulations to remain competitive.
IoT Data Sovereignty – A Changing Regulatory Landscape
Governments are moving faster than the market itself. Key examples include:
The EU & US: The EU’s Cyber Resilience Act and the US’s NIST IR 8259 require continuous monitoring of IoT assets. This necessitates real-time visibility of metadata on the data plane, something legacy roaming cannot easily provide.
Middle East Mandates: Countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE mandate that business-confidential information or IoT data must be processed in-country. Traditional home-routed roaming, which sends data back to a home network thousands of kilometres away, often results in immediate non-compliance.
The UK: The Telecom Security Act imposes strict requirements on how network infrastructure is deployed, complicating the use of certain hyperscale cloud providers.
The Importance of Granular Control
72% of enterprises and OEMs identified the ability to configure connectivity routing to ensure IoT data sovereignty within a specific country or region as a high or highest priority. Enterprises now demand the same level of control over cellular networks that they have over their fixed-line corporate firewalls. They need the ability to treat different data types uniquely, routing non-critical data one way while keeping sensitive data strictly localised. Achieving this requires a fundamental level of network flexibility that traditional “best-effort” roaming simply cannot offer.
An Edge Network Approach
To address these needs, connectivity providers are increasingly focusing on globally distributed packet gateway infrastructure. By deploying network edge nodes that allow for local data plane breakouts, providers can ensure that sensitive traffic never leaves the required jurisdiction, fulfilling sovereignty mandates while maintaining a globally unified solution.
Stacuity Edge-as-a-Service
Stacuity Edge provides the essential infrastructure to solve these challenges, offering a managed breakout service with a single integration point.
It transforms compliance from a hurdle into a competitive edge, allowing providers to meet regional mandates rapidly. With Stacuity, you gain the agility to route data locally across the globe while maintaining total control over your connectivity.
Secure, Sovereign and Performant Connectivity with Edge Network Infrastructure
