Microsoft is broadening its use of Marvell’s LiquidSecurity hardware security modules (HSMs) to power additional cloud-based security services for Azure customers in Europe. The move extends existing deployments in North America and Asia and follows Marvell’s recent eIDAS and Common Criteria EAL4+ certifications, which clear the way for supporting identity, passport, and cross-border digital contract services across the EU.
By shifting traditional on-premise HSM workloads into cloud-scale PCIe-based accelerators running on Marvell’s OCTEON DPUs, Azure aims to reduce latency and operational overhead for high-volume encryption and verification processes. Microsoft plans to expand use cases including contract certification, ID document verification, and other workflows that require tamper-resistant key management across sovereign, public, and government cloud environments.
LiquidSecurity 2 supports up to 1 million keys and more than 1 million operations per second per adapter, enabling hyperscale operators to shrink footprint and power consumption compared with legacy 1U–2U HSM appliances. Marvell positions this as a path for broader adoption of HSM-backed services in sectors such as healthcare, financial services, and government due to simplified deployment and customization options.
• Microsoft is expanding Marvell LiquidSecurity-backed key management to Europe.
• Certifications include eIDAS and Common Criteria EAL4+ for identity and trust services.
• Azure plans to support digital contract signing, identity verification, and passport-related workflows.
• LiquidSecurity replaces appliance-based HSMs with cloud-scale PCIe cards powered by OCTEON DPUs.
• Each card handles 1M keys and 1M operations/sec with lower power and rack usage.
• Cloud HSM services reduce customer hardware management and broaden access to secure key infrastructure.
• Marvell targets public, sovereign, and government cloud environments with customizable options.
“We congratulate Marvell on achieving eIDAS and CC EAL4+ certification of its LiquidSecurity HSMs, which power our Azure Key Vault, Azure Key Vault Managed HSM and Cloud HSM services,” said Soumya Subramanian, vice president of Cloud Security Engineering at Microsoft Azure.
🌐 Analysis
Azure’s expanded deployment reflects a broader shift toward DPU-accelerated cryptographic services as cloud providers prepare for higher transaction volumes, sovereign cloud mandates, and post-quantum cryptography transitions. Marvell has steadily built momentum with LiquidSecurity across hyperscalers, while competitors such as NVIDIA (BlueField), Intel, and AMD-Pensando continue pushing their own security and offload architectures into cloud and enterprise markets.
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