Data sovereignty might sound like a technical debate for technical teams to tackle, but for visitor attractions, it’s a leadership issue. When you’re making decisions about analytics, cloud infrastructure or compliance, it pays to understand what data sovereignty really means—and just as importantly, what it doesn’t.

Despite how often it comes up in procurement conversations or boardroom discussions, the terms data sovereignty and data residency are often misunderstood or mistakenly used interchangeably. This confusion can lead to unecessarily risk averse decisions that miss the bigger picture.

Getting the terms right

Let’s start by separating the concepts:

     Data residency is about where your data is physically stored.

     Data sovereignty is about who can legally access that data.

That distinction matters. Your data might live on a server in your home country, but if it’s hosted by a US based cloud provider like AWS or Microsoft Azure, it’s still subject to US law—specifically the CLOUD Act. This gives US authorities legal avenues to access data from US companies, even if that data is hosted offshore. 

This doesn’t mean the FBI is watching your visitor counts. It does mean location isn’t a shield. Control is a more complex conversation. 

The cost of playing it safe

We’ve seen organisations go to great lengths to avoid perceived sovereignty risks. In some cases, that means pushing for on premise servers or avoiding cloud based tools altogether. Ironically, that approach can increase vulnerability—introducing risks from outdated infrastructure, inconsistent patching or limited backup and recovery.

The better way to handle this is the one your CFO would recognise: treat it like any other form of risk management. Identify the risks, evaluate the likelihood and impact, and decide what’s acceptable given your organisation’s goals.

Most data isn’t personal

The good news? Most of the data used in visitor attraction analytics isn’t personally identifiable. We’re not talking about names, phone numbers or addresses. We’re talking about visitor volumes, dwell times, sales trends and experience insights.

At Dexibit, we deliberately separate analytics from personally identifiable information. Our systems don’t process credit card data or store sensitive personal details. We strip that information out before it even hits our platform.

That means the data we work with—visitor flows, ticket types, retail transactions—is usually exempt from strict data sovereignty rules. And because it doesn’t include personal identifiers, it can be used more safely and widely across your team.

Cloud isn’t the problem

It’s tempting to see cloud infrastructure as a risk, but the reality is often the opposite. The big cloud providers offer a level of security, scalability and resilience that’s hard to match in house. At Dexibit, we use cloud native services with encryption at rest and in transit, SOC 2 compliance and robust access controls.

What that means is better protection, not worse. And if your systems are already relying on cloud based vendors—from ticketing to email marketing to analytics—you’re already operating in a globally distributed, cloud powered world. Pretending otherwise doesn’t change the risk. It just limits your ability to manage it.

Keep it practical

If you’re in a visitor attraction and trying to navigate these issues, here are a few pragmatic steps:

1. Understand the difference between sovereignty and residency.
2. Know where your data is stored and who controls it.
3. Focus on minimising the personal data you collect in the first place and where you use it afterwards.
4. Use strong encryption and security practices, and ask your vendors to prove theirs.
5. Frame the conversation around risk management, not blanket avoidance.

Don’t confuse sovereignty with security

Ultimately, data sovereignty is just one dimension of trust. Security, governance and transparency matter more day to day. It’s not about locking everything down or cutting off access. It’s about making informed decisions that balance legal, operational and strategic priorities.