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Handshake Infrastructure & Data Update

Tawnya
  • Updated

Migration from EU to US Infrastructure

We’re excited that Handshake will be consolidating into a global platform in July 2026. This news means that the network and opportunities are growing for both students and employers! With this, there will be some changes to data storage, as outlined below.

What is changing?

Handshake is transitioning from EU-based data storage to a US-based environment, supported by Handshake’s primary US infrastructure (our global platform). As part of this, EU/UK platform data will be migrated from Google’s EU region to Google’s US region.

This is primarily a hosting-location change; purposes and legal bases for processing generally remain unchanged, as do data categories, access controls, and security measures on the platform. Note that both Handshake and Google participate in the EU–US Data Privacy Framework. The Privacy Policy will be updated and communicated if and as required.

Why is Handshake making this shift?

To ensure long-term product stability, higher performance, and alignment with Handshake’s global platform architecture. Centralising infrastructure allows us to:

  • Scale innovation more quickly
  • Maintain a single global codebase
  • Improve reliability, uptime, and security
  • Accelerate AI-powered product development

Is this move compliant with GDPR?

Handshake remains fully committed to GDPR/UK GDPR compliance. Specifically, we will:

  • Rely on approved transfer mechanisms for cross-boarder transfers: EU–US Data Privacy Framework (DPF) participation for certified entities and Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) where required;
  • Maintain lawful bases: Processing purposes, categories, and retention do not change; existing legal bases (e.g., contract/legitimate interests) continue to apply;
  • Apply appropriate technical and organisational measures: Encryption in transit/at rest, access controls, logging/monitoring, and vendor due diligence equivalent to (or stronger than) the current EU setup;
  • Preserve data subject rights: Data subject rights such as access, erasure, etc. remain available via existing channels, and are not impacted by hosting location.

Will this change affect our service or data access?

No service disruption is expected. The transition is designed to be seamless for all partners, with no functional changes to your Handshake instance. Data access and security controls remain unchanged.

Should you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact Support.