CloudHSM vs. on-prem HSM: Which one fits your security strategy?

Written by Martina Alig | Nov 24, 2025

Every organization that handles sensitive data needs to protect its encryption keys. This is the foundation of digital trust. Traditionally, this meant installing and maintaining physical Hardware Security Modules (HSMs) in secure data centers.

But there’s another way. With CloudHSM, the same trusted protection moves to the cloud – without the need for physical hardware, long deployment cycles, or ongoing maintenance.

On-prem HSM: Full control, full responsibility

Running an HSM on-premises gives organizations complete ownership and control over their security environment. The hardware is physically in your hands: you decide who can access it, where it’s installed, and how it’s connected.

This approach is often required in highly regulated sectors such as finance or government, where regulations like FIPS and compliance frameworks demand physical custody of cryptographic devices and air-gapped infrastructure to maintain full control over cryptographic key storage.

However, full control also comes with full responsibility. Organizations must manage every aspect of the lifecycle – from installation, and firmware updates to continuous monitoring and secure backups.
Scaling can be slow and costly, as each new environment requires new hardware, additional rack space, and specialized expertise to operate the devices securely.

In short, on-prem HSMs deliver the highest level of control and compliance — but at the cost of capital investment, operational effort, and time.

CloudHSM: Security that adapts to you

Securosys CloudHSM offers the same level of certified hardware protection — but as a fully managed service. Instead of purchasing and operating your own HSMs, you access them securely through the cloud.

With CloudHSM you benefit from:

No installation or Capital Expenditures (CAPEX) – start in days, not months.
Predictable, pay-as-you-go costs that grow with your needs.
Automatic maintenance and backups, handled for you by our team of experts.
Global clusters (clusters in Switzerland, Germany, Singapore and USA) ensuring availability, low latency, and redundancy.
Safe testing environment to test Securosys CloudHSM in your own architecture.

You keep end-to-end control of your keys — only you can generate, use, or delete them — while Securosys ensures the secure operation of the underlying HSMs.

For organizations without the internal resources to deploy and maintain hardware, CloudHSM provides an easy path to enterprise-grade encryption and compliance-ready key management, accessible anywhere in the world. This solution is also particularly attractive for businesses looking to integrate with multi-cloud and hybrid environments.

Making the right choice

If your organization needs:

Direct hardware ownership
Physical control over access and networks
Compliance that explicitly requires in-house devices

then, an on-premises HSM remains the right fit. Check out our Primus HSMs to find the one fitting your business security infrastructure.

If, however, you need:

Fast deployment and scalability
No hardware investment or maintenance burden
Predictable operational costs
The ability to focus on your core applications rather than infrastructure

then, CloudHSM delivers the same strong security with greater agility and simplicity. Learn more about our CloudHSM offer.

	ON-PREMISES HSM	CLOUDHSM AS-A-SERVICE
SECURITY ARCHITECTURE	Full control over security policies, key management, and physical security.	Shared responsibility model: provider secures infrastructure, customer manages access and keys.
COST	CAPEX investment required to buy the hardware. On-site team needed for deployment and configuration. Remote administration for continuous maintenance.	No installation or CAPEX required, no hardware needed. All-inclusive maintenance, software updates, and troubleshooting. Predictable costs over time.
TIME	Time for delivery, installation, and setup. Scaling up requires additional equipment and installation. Staff training required to operate HSMs.	Implementation and setup take only a few days.
SPACE	Physical hardware requires rack space, power, cooling, physical access control.	Zero rack space required for the same level of hardened security.
OPERATIONS	Regular device backups needed. Devices need to be stored securely and in redundant locations. Regular maintenance tasks such as firmware updates. HSM administrator credentials need to be stored securely and in redundant locations.	Backups are managed for you by Securosys. Optionally: For full control, you can additionally conduct backups yourself with the remote Partition Administration. HSM administration and maintenance done for you (such as firmware updates).

Conclusion

Whether your goal is to protect digital identities, secure blockchain transactions, or encrypt sensitive data on-premises or in the cloud: Securosys provides the trusted foundation for your cryptographic operations. Find the right HSM for your need or explore our CloudHSM offer.

Interested in trying out CloudHSM for free? Start your 90-days free trial and experience how easy hardware-grade security can be.

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