Escrow for the IT sector
The IT sector runs on platforms, APIs, and dataflows. But what happens if a vendor goes out of business or your cloud environment gets blocked? With Escrow, you retain access to source code, data, and documentation — enabling you to manage, restore, and continue development without vendor lock‑in.
Escrow in the IT Sector
The IT sector is the beating heart of digital transformation. Everything depends on platforms, microservices, APIs, data pipelines, and automation. But what if a critical vendor disappears, a release breaks, or your cloud tenant gets blocked? In a 24/7 environment, you need to stay operational at all times. Escrow ensures that you keep access to source code, data, and documentation — so teams can maintain, fix, and develop further without lock‑in.
1) The digital backbone of your organisation
CI/CD, container orchestration, identity & access, observability, iPaaS, ETL: every component influences your uptime.
With Software Escrow, you safeguard source code, build scripts, IaC templates (e.g., Terraform), secrets policies, deployment guides, and runbooks.
With SaaS Escrow, you secure service continuity (including payment fallback to cloud providers) and access to admin interfaces.
With Data Escrow, you safeguard datasets and schemas that fall outside your direct control — such as multi‑tenant SaaS data.
The result: your platform remains operable, even if a vendor or integrator drops out.
What we safeguard:
Source code (repos, tags, build instructions), dependencies, and licenses
CI/CD pipelines, IaC, secrets‑rotation processes (excluding production secrets)
Runbooks, SRE procedures, on‑call routes, RTO/RPO assumptions
Multi‑cloud/region information and fallbacks for PaaS/SaaS components
Data models, schemas, migrations, and test data
2) Continuity & risk mitigation
Incidents cost money and trust. With an escrow arrangement, you can have what you need — source code, containers, images, configurations, and documentation — released in a controlled manner during a major incident. Internal or external engineers can then restore systems, reducing MTTD/MTTR and lowering SLA risk.
Typical scenarios:
Vendor ceases operations or is acquired
Subscription/contract conflict threatening access
Critical bug in a proprietary component that you must patch yourself
3) IP protection and custom software
Using custom modules, integrations, or proprietary frameworks? Escrow records rights and access clearly: the developer keeps the intellectual property; you gain guaranteed access when needed. This combines innovation with control and prevents “hard” rewrites under time pressure.
4) Compliance & standards (NIS2, ISO 27001, SOC 2)
Escrow provides demonstrable support for your business‑continuity and information‑security controls. It strengthens evidence for change and release management, supplier risk management, and recovery plans — all relevant for NIS2, ISO 27001, and SOC 2. Verification reports and update logs can be submitted during audits.
5) What we safeguard
Source code (repos, tags, build instructions), dependencies, licenses
CI/CD pipelines, IaC, secrets‑rotation processes (excluding production secrets)
Runbooks, SRE procedures, on‑call routes, RTO/RPO assumptions
Multi‑cloud/region information and fallbacks for PaaS/SaaS components
Data models, schemas, migrations, and test data
6) Verification & updates (Active Escrow)
We verify periodically. Examples include:
VerifOne – integrity check of the deposit
VerifTwo – build/compile/test in the current environment
VerifThree – clean‑room rebuild + installation + functional smoke tests
This ensures you don’t face surprises for the first time during an incident.
7) IT procurement checklist
Is access to source code, IaC, and runbooks contractually secured?
Is there a payment fallback to cloud providers?
Are verification frequency and release criteria clearly defined?
Does the arrangement align with your RTO/RPO and BCM plans?
Partners in IT
In the IT sector, digital continuity is crucial. Together with our partners — from software developers to cloud providers — Escrow4all ensures ongoing access to business‑critical systems, source code, and data, even if the vendor fails.
Every client is unique to us, which is why we follow a proven process:
Analysis
A close look at your unique business case and requirements.
Advice
What solution fits best, based on our expertise and years of experience?
Execution
A secure process, both technically and legally sound.
IT companies provide software, platforms, and digital services themselves. If a developer drops out or an application is no longer maintained, customers, SLAs, and systems may be directly affected. An escrow agreement guarantees that source code, documentation, and technical knowledge remain available, allowing service delivery to continue even in the event of vendor failure.
Absolutely. Both NIS2 and ISO 27001 emphasize the need for demonstrable measures around business continuity and information security. Escrow provides concrete evidence that risks are managed and continuity is structurally ensured, valuable for audits, due diligence, and clients with strict requirements.
In the event of a software vendor’s bankruptcy, the loss of a key developer, or prolonged system failure, escrow can release the source code. Internal teams or external specialists can then safely take over management, maintenance, or further development — minimizing downtime and preventing disruption of critical IT operations.
Many IT companies deliver custom modules, integrations, API connections, or industry-specific solutions. Escrow ensures full IP protection for the developer while giving clients the assurance that essential software remains usable in crisis situations. It builds trust without compromising ownership.
Escrow is suitable for software developers, SaaS providers, IT outsourcers, hosting and cloud providers, and any organization offering mission-critical digital services. Costs depend on the software type, number of deposits, and desired level of verification. You can easily calculate pricing or book a free consultation via our website.
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Looking for innovative escrow solutions?
Contact us now.