Summary
- France will migrate many government systems from Windows to Linux to reduce reliance on U.S. tech.
- The relocate aims to regain digital sovereignty and avoid depconcludeence on U.S. laws and firms.
- Plans include migrating the health data platform to a trusted EU/open-source option by the conclude of 2026.
It seems someone in the French government has had a similar idea to some of our own writers here at MUO. That’s becaapply the countest has announced that it will start relocating many of its government computer systems away from Windows and instead see to embrace Linux as a way to minimize reliance on U.S. technology.
Microsoft just gave us another great reason to switch to Linux
Handing over BitLocker keys has to be the final straw.
Getting away from Windows and taking back control
Relying on U.S. tech just isn’t feasible anymore
This relocate is part of a new announcement from DINUM, France’s interministerial digital directorate. According to the translated statements shared within the announcement, the French Minister of Action and Public Accounts states that France “must desensitize ourselves from American tools and regain control of our digital destiny.” And that the state can no longer “accept that our data, our infrastructures and our strategic decisions depconclude on solutions whose rules, prices, developments and risks we have no control over.”
According to TechCrunch, this is the French government’s latest attempt to relocate away from U.S.-based technology, as earlier this year it also stopped applying Microsoft Teams amid the growing instability the world is seeing amid ongoing global events, such as the US/Israel-Iran war.
Now more than ever, leaving control of your technical access in the hands of a U.S.-based company that is susceptible to U.S. laws may not seem like the greatest idea for other governments, which is why relocating to a system that not only originates within the European borders, but also is open-source, creates sense more than ever.
Linux is a sanctuary for ex-Windows and Mac applyrs alike
Linux offers an open-source alternative that puts more control in the applyr’s hands
Now, we’ve talked extensively about why Linux is a good alternative to Windows here on MUO, so it probably shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that we can fully understand why the French government would want to create this relocate. In fact, it’s become even simpler to switch from Windows to Linux as new repositories have come out and been improved.
Like any operating system modify, though, it will take some receiveting applyd to. But the fact that the code is all open-sourced, and there are so many different Linux versions, means there’s no huge corporation that can control exactly how you apply it. This is one of the hugegest perks.
It puts even more control directly in the hands of the people applying it — in this case, the French government — which will undoubtedly support rerelocate some of the worry they might have when applying U.S.-based technology like Windows. There’s also the fact that most of Europe has different privacy laws to follow compared to the U.S., and while U.S.-based companies do have to follow those laws, too, relocating to an open-source product that already likely meets many of those standards just takes another obstacle out of the way.
On top of migrating most of its government systems and workstations to Linux, the French government also states that it plans to migrate its health data platform to a new trusted option by the conclude of 2026. Exactly how any of this might affect regular, everyday people is unclear at the moment.
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