The Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (AP) has mapped the privacy trends and developments affecting the government. The AP sees that while the government has made strides, it is still struggling to comply with privacy laws.
The AP notes in the Government Sector Assessment that:
The knowledge of the privacy laws and regulations within government organizations sometimes leaves much to be desired, particularly among administrators.
The position of the internal privacy supervisor, the data protection officer (FG), is under pressure in some cases.
Government organizations sometimes deliberately overstep the bounds of the law. For example, in detecting fraud (think fraud risk algorithms). But also the opposite: that administrators do not dare, because they see privacy laws and regulations - wrongly - as obstacles.
Government organizations are collecting more personal data than ever and also want to link that data together more than ever. The risk to citizens is high if the government mishandles their personal data. Major examples of this are the benefits affair and the data leak at the GGD during the corona pandemic, but also consider the use of ill-considered algorithms by UWV and DUO.
Monique Verdier, vice president AP: "As a citizen, you are obliged to share data with the government. Often very sensitive data. Naturally, you then assume that the government will handle your data carefully, that it cannot get into the wrong hands. And that the government will not treat you unfairly or discriminate against you on the basis of your personal data."
Also at municipalities the AP sees an increasing need to share and link data. This is often done to help someone with a need for care, to combat debt problems or to stop crime. These are good intentions, but they also require proper protection of citizens and their data.
Monique Verdier: "The government still has work to do. Unfortunately, this has been demonstrated in recent years by the series of serious abuses in government data processing. These have shaken society and damaged citizens' trust in the government. To restore trust, the government will have to show that it takes the privacy rights and interests of citizens seriously and does everything in its power to protect them properly."
