Amid Trump’s attacks and armed sanctions, Europeans are looking to rely less on American technology

Imagine a world where your credit card no longer works, your Amazon account is closed, and using American tech companies is no longer an option. It is nearly impossible to shop online, make bank transfers to a family member abroad, or rely on anything related to the United States, including the US dollar.

For one Canadian, this is her reality now.

Last year, the Trump administration added Kimberly Prost, a judge at the International Criminal Court, to her position List of economic sanctionshaving served on the Appeals Chamber that in 2020 unanimously authorized the ICC Prosecutor to investigate alleged war crimes in Afghanistan since 2003, including US service members. The United States is not a member of the International Criminal Court and does not recognize its authority. numerous Other judges and prosecutors at the International Criminal Court It was also sanctioned by the Trump administration.

Prost, whose name now shares the same list as some of the world’s most dangerous people, from terrorists to North Korean hackers and Iranian spies, described the impact of sanctions on her life as “paralyzing”. Interview conducted by the Irish Times.

This landmark case provides a glimpse into the disruption that being cut off from the United States can bring to anyone’s daily life; Lawmakers and government leaders across Europe are becoming more aware of the looming threat facing them at home, and of their over-reliance on American technology.

Trump’s diplomatic escalation and upending of international norms, incl Capture of a foreign leader and Threatening to invade a NATO member state and European allyhas prompted some European Union countries to consider moving away from American technology and regaining their digital sovereignty. This shift in thinking comes at a time when the Trump administration has become increasingly unpredictable and vindictive.

In Belgium, the country’s cybersecurity chief, Miguel De Bruycker, admitted this Recent interview Europe “lost the Internet” to the United States, which hoarded a large amount of the world’s technology and financial systems. De Bruycker said it was “currently impossible” to store data entirely in Europe as a result of US dominance of digital infrastructure, and urged the EU to boost technology across the bloc.

The European Parliament voted on January 22 to adopt a report directing the European Commission to identify areas where the EU can reduce its dependence on foreign service providers. Parliamentarians said that the European Union and its 27 member states depend on countries outside the European Union for more than 80% of its products, services and digital infrastructure. The vote was non-binding, but it comes at a time when the European Commission was binding Moving to bring More of its technologies and dependencies on its land.

The French government said on Tuesday that it would replace Zoom and Microsoft Teams Through home-made Visio video conferencing softwareAccording to the French Minister of Civil Service and State Reform, David Emile.

Concerns about digital sovereignty are not new; they go back decades, at least to 2001, when the United States introduced the Patriot Act in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The Patriot Act allowed US intelligence agencies to monitor the world in ways they had never been allowed to before, including spying on the communications of citizens of its closest allies in Europe, despite strict data protection and privacy rules imposed by the European Union.

Microsoft He was waived years later in 2011 And that, as an American technology company, it may be forced to hand over data to Europeans in response to a secret order from the American government; It wasn’t until 2013 when much of this surveillance was revealed in practice through secret documents leaked by Then-NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

At the individual consumer level, there has also been a concerted campaign urging users to move away from US technology and technology providers, along with tech workers. Asking their CEOs to speak up Against the increasing brutality of US federal immigration agents.

Freelance journalist Paris Marks has a guide to Exit US Technology Serviceswhile many other sites, such as Switch to .eu and European alternativesEncouraging users to use alternatives to big technology products and services, such as open source tools.