Nearly 4 in 10 websites with cookie banners are violating privacy laws. They do not properly ask for permission to place tracking cookies. This emerges from research by the Consumers' Association among 100 popular websites. Especially news websites often go wrong.
Twenty news sites from the survey place a cookie banner, but 16 of them showed something wrong. For example, users often have to click multiple times to refuse tracking cookies. Or the refuse option is hard to find. Half of the offenders fall under DPG Media (nu.nl, volkskrant.nl, tweakers.net, ad.nl, sportnieuws.nl, autoweek.nl, destentor.nl and gelderlander.nl). Bits of Freedom already handed out a Big Brother award to DPG Media in February 2025 for large-scale tracking of consumers.
Tracking cookies collect information about interests, behavior and preferences. Websites use this to build detailed profiles of consumers without their control. In turn, the websites can sell or share these profiles with other organizations. But the Privacy Act (AVG) of 2018 imposes rules on the processing of personal data. And in addition, the Personal Data Authority (AP) has created additional guidelines for good cookie banners.
Sandra Molenaar, director Consumer Association: 'It is unacceptable that so many websites act as if the privacy law does not apply to them. Websites should not force consumers to click endlessly to protect their privacy. We have shared our research results with the AP. The regulator has been given extra budget to check more often. Now they have to follow through.
