The latest announcement comes after Microsoft said last month that it is prepared to take legal action to safeguard data access for India’s public sector and critical infrastructure customers.
By 2026, the option for in-country data processing will be extended to more countries including Canada, Germany, Italy, Malaysia, Poland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States.
This means that Microsoft customers across 15 countries will have more control over governance and security over their data generated via Microsoft 365 Copilot including interactions with its AI chatbot within apps like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams.
This initiative is particularly designed for governments and highly regulated industries to provide customers with additional governance, security, and regulatory compliance options for Microsoft 365 Copilot, the company announced on Tuesday, November 4.
In-country processing allows Copilot interactions to be processed in data centres located within a country's boundaries, providing consumers more control over their data. It can also increase performance by lowering latency, resulting in a more responsive Copilot experience. Microsoft assures that under in-country processing, Copilot data will be stored and processed in a data centre issued in the same country.
“Our principle is clear: your data, your control—wherever you operate," said Paul Lorimer, Corporate Vice President, Office 365 Enterprise and Cloud Engineering.
In its blog, the company also mentioned that currently, it provides in-country data residency to Microsoft 365 and Microsoft 365 Copilot clients in 27 countries, as well as in-region data residence and processing for countries within the European Union (EU) Data Boundary.
With the inclusion of in-country data processing for another 15 countries, Microsoft can now provide clients with a choice "for the location of both AI data processing and residency, that can further at-scale adoption and deployment of Microsoft 365 Copilot."
In October, Microsoft said that it will make every attempt to notify customers of any foreign government orders demanding service suspension and will fight for the revocation of such orders through legal means.
"Microsoft will use best efforts to inform customers of any foreign government orders mandating service suspension, advocate for withdrawal of any such order through legal channels and may seek injunctive relief to preserve service continuity. We also commit to collaborating in good faith with customers to maintain access to their data and minimise business disruption," it said.
