Law & Politics

With great concern, Privacy First has taken note of the intention of the Dutch government to employ special apps in the fight against the coronavirus. In Privacy First’s view, the use of such apps is a dangerous development because it could lead to stigmatisation and numerous unfounded suspicions, and may also cause unnecessary unrest and panic. Even when ‘anonymized’, the data from these apps can still be traced back to individuals through data fusion. In case this technology will be introduced on a large scale, it will result in a surveillance society in which everyone is being continuously monitored – something people will be acutely aware of and would lead to an imminent societal chilling effect. Furthermore, there is a substantial risk that the collected data will be used and misued for multiple (illegitimate) purposes by companies and public authorities. Moreover, if these data fall into the hands of criminal organizations, they will be a gold mine for criminal activities. For Privacy First, these risks of Corona apps do not outweigh their presumed benefits.

The right to anonymity in public space is a fundamental right, one that is crucial for the functioning of our democratic constitutional State. Any democratic decision to nullify this right is simply unacceptable. If indeed the deployment of ‘Corona apps’ will be widespread, then at least their use should be strictly anonymous and voluntary. That is to say, they should be used only for a legitimate, specific purpose, following individual, prior consent without any form of outside pressure and on the premise that all the necessary information is provided. In this respect, privacy by design (embedding privacy protection in technology) must be a guiding principle. For Privacy First, these are stringent and non-negotiable prerequisites. In case these conditions are not met, Privacy First will not hesitate to bring proceedings before a court.

The world is hit exceptionally hard by the coronavirus. This pandemic is not only a health hazard, but can also lead to a human rights crisis, endangering privacy among other rights.

The right to privacy includes the protection of everyone’s private life, personal data, confidential communication, home inviolability and physical integrity. Privacy First was founded to protect and promote these rights. Not only in times of peace and prosperity, but also in times of crisis.

Now more than ever, it is vital to stand up for our social freedom and privacy. Fear should not play a role in this. However, various countries have introduced draconian laws, measures and infrastructures. Much is at stake here, namely preserving everyone’s freedom, autonomy and human dignity.

Privacy First monitors these developments and reacts proactively as soon as governments are about to take measures that are not strictly necessary and proportionate. In this respect, Privacy First holds that the following measures are in essence illegitimate:
- Mass surveillance
- Forced inspections in the home
- Abolition of anonymous or cash payments
- Secret use of camera surveillance and biometrics
- Every form of infringement on medical confidentiality.

Privacy First will see to it that justified measures will only apply temporarily and will be lifted as soon as the Corona crisis is over. It should be ensured that no new, structural and permanent emergency legislation is introduced. While the measures are in place, effective legal means should remain available and privacy supervisory bodies should remain critical.

Moreover, in order to control the coronavirus effectively, we should rely on the individual responsibility of citizens. Much is possible on the basis of voluntariness and individual, fully informed, specific and prior consent.

As always, Privacy First is prepared to assist in the development of privacy-friendly policies and any solutions based on privacy by design, preferably in collaboration with relevant organizations and experts. Especially in these times, the Netherlands (and the European Union) can become an international point of reference when it comes to fighting a pandemic while preserving democratic values and the right to privacy. This is the only way that the Corona crisis will not be able to weaken our world lastingly, and instead, we will emerge stronger together.

Column

The coronavirus has plunged the whole world into a deep crisis and governments do their utmost to control the dissemination. As I wrote in my previous column, it is important especially now to keep our heads cool and to protect our civil rights and privacy. A short and temporary infringement of our privacy in the general interest may be legitimate. The western model should imply a partial, temporary lockdown, lasting at most twice the incubation period so as to control the spread of the virus based on increased testing, and to facilitate the healthcare system, augmenting the number of critical care beds.

Moreover, this should be a participatory lockdown, based on voluntary participation and citizens’ individual responsibility. This is only logical, as trust is the cornerstone of our democratic society, even though at times there is a lack of it. This concerns trust in fellow citizens, the government and first of all, oneself. At this point in time I have a lot of confidence in the Dutch approach, which is a combination of common sense and relying on healthcare experts. Ultimately, we will have to learn to live with this virus and control potential outbreaks.

To measure is to know and therefore it is essential to scale up the number of tests with the right test equipment without delay. There are tests which can indicate quickly whether someone is infected. It is interesting to note that in Germany, where practically everyone with symptoms is being tested, the percentages of gravely ill and deceased people are considerably lower than in countries where testing is very limited. For policy makers and politicians it is thus very important to take the right decisions on the basis of facts.

If not, there will be a long-standing and emotionally-driven struggle, the encroachment on our freedom will not be short and temporary and power will shift disproportionately into the hands of the State. Such a scenario will see us move towards a forced surveillance society (see the current situation Israel is in, the newly introduced legislation in the UK as well as EU proposals with regard to telecom location data), characterised by the abolishment of anonymous (cash) payments (see the current guidelines in the Dutch retail sector), the dissolution of medical confidentiality and physical integrity in the context of potential virus infections (compulsory vaccinations and apps) and censorship of any alternative or undesired sources of information that counter the prevailing narrative. Besides, commercial interests of IT and pharmaceutical companies would come to dominate even more.

In the best case scenario, both society and the economy will soon be able to revive on the basis of individual and aggregate test results, with this lesson to bear in mind: let’s not lose the importance of our freedom, health and individual responsibility out of sight. All of a sudden, citizens have been left to their own devices and this experience will make them realize that life is not malleable and our society is not a mere paper exercise. This situation could lead to increased civic participation and less government, i.e. greater focus on critical functions. When we take a look around now, we see positive-minded, well-informed and responsible citizens and there is no need to keep focusing on a handful of exceptions. That is, as long as the measures in place are comprehensible, measurable and very temporary, and are not packaged into structural legislation, thereby misusing the crisis in order to grant certain organizations and sectors greater influence and power.

Finally, it’s worth realizing that all entrepreneurial Dutchmen without whom we would not be able to pay our fine public services, also deserve a round of applause. And perhaps the idea of a basic income for every citizen could be reviewed once more. In other words: let’s aim for more individual decisions in a freer society that is supported by technology and common sense!

Here’s to a free 2020!

Bas Filippini,
Privacy First chairman
(in personal capacity)

Column

Many questions have been raised about Privacy First’s point of view in relation to the protection of privacy in crisis situations, such as the one we’re currently experiencing as a result of the coronavirus. As indicated previously, I support the precautionary principle, i.e., we don’t know what we don’t know and what in fact is effective. A strict, western-style approach on the basis of a temporary (partial) lockdown for a (very) short period of time will drastically flatten the coronavirus curve and will make sure the healthcare system does not collapse. This also allows us to gain time to find a vaccine or medicine. We still don’t know exactly what kind of virus we’re dealing with, how it came into existence and how to control it.

Our society is built on trust. In a crisis situation like we’re in now, authorities will have to take temporary crisis measures which allow citizens to do the right thing voluntarily and on the basis of trust. This may temporarily restrict privacy, such as freedom of movement and/or physical integrity (think of being in quarantine). The government can choose to have a full or partial lockdown. Making this choice, it is essential that we rely on the norms and values of our free, democratic society, and that there is trust both in the citizenry and in the means and measures that may be employed. Ideally, this would result in a participatory lockdown based on everyone’s freedom and sense of responsibility.

Past experience shows that when there is open and honest communication, citizens act responsibly and in the general interest. This implies that draconian and structural legislative measures that restrict freedom can be kept at bay, much to the benefit of the people and the economy. In this respect, it is significant that practically all companies, institutions and organizations currently comply with the protocols, and even do more than what is required. After a period of inaction, the Dutch government has decided to act and take responsibility, which is most welcome. After all, this concerns a potentially great number of very sick patients and fatalities, including many elderly and vulnerable people.

Our government has opted for a democratic instead of a dictatorial approach, and that is to be applauded. So let’s use this moment to keep our head cool instead of infringing upon everyone’s freedom and right to privacy, freedom of movement, bodily integrity and cash payments. I see there is a bitter wind sweeping through Denmark, where a coronavirus emergency law has been rushed through, allowing the authorities to force people to be vaccinated (even though there is no vaccine yet), and in France too, where permanent crisis measures seem to have been implemented. All this is incompatible with a decent society and creates misplaced precedents. Let’s act in the general interest on the basis of trust and everyone’s own responsibility. For that, we need neither to be locked up, nor do we want to see the army in the streets, or any other draconian measures or laws to be put in place.

Let’s strive for a free and trustworthy Netherlands and Europe.

Bas Filippini,
Privacy First chairman
(in personal capacity)

In the context of the National Privacy Conference organized by Privacy First and the Dutch Platform for the Information Society (ECP), today the Dutch Privacy Awards have been handed out. These Awards offer a podium to organizations that consider privacy as an opportunity to positively distinguish themselves and want privacy-friendly entrepreneurship and innovation to become a benchmark. The winners of the 2020 Dutch Privacy Awards are Publicroam, NUTS and Candle.

Winner: Publicroam

Safe and easy access to WiFi everywhere for guest users

Most people in libraries, hotels, coffee bars and other public places log onto the local WiFi network in order to save on mobile data and to not rely on mobile networks which indoors may not be available everywhere. Often, WiFi networks operate on the basis of a single, local password, indicated on tables and screens. This makes the digital activities of users vulnerable in more ways than one, with all the ensuing nasty consequences. On top of that, users may not be informed about what the internet provider does with their personal data. It is said that the trade in personal data is by now more profitable than the trade in oil.

These risks were first identified by educational institutions and later by public authorities. This led to the creation of international roaming services like Eduroam and Govroam. But why aren’t such services available everywhere and to everyone? Publicroam set out to change just that and is being welcomed in more and more places. And rightfully so, according to the Privacy Awards expert panel. Several large municipalities and organizations (all libraries in the Netherlands among them) are already connected to Publicroam, or will be soon. In and of itself this facility is not a completely new solution, but the expert panel is particularly impressed by the fact that it can offer great advantages to literally everyone in the country – and possibly beyond – and can therefore have a huge impact on what we’re used to: one account which allows all users to go online automatically and securely, with serious respect for privacy ensured.

It’s possible after all: sound business initiatives that respect privacy; Publicroam is proof of this.

Winner: NUTS

Decentral infrastructure for privacy-friendly communication in healthcare

The NUTS Foundation is an initiative which aims to offer a privacy-friendly solution to identity management and sharing personal data in healthcare environments. It entails that individuals keep control over which healthcare data may be shared between healthcare providers. The NUTS Foundation has laid down its principles in a manifesto which all participants should ascribe to and which states that all software that’s being developed should meet the demands of open source. The result that the NUTS Foundation is striving for is a decentral system which keeps control over personal health information in the hands of the people involved.

The services offered by the decentral network are based on the principles of privacy by design. Identity management solutions contribute to irrefutably establishing the identity of individuals concerned. The decentral approach is in line with the digital healthcare architecture which is currently in the making and is also partly being introduced already. In this way, healthcare information components can use the decentral facilities that are being realized through NUTS.

In the eyes of the expert panel, the NUTS Foundation is a strong example of an initiative which not only looks at privacy issues in a comprehensive way but creates concrete solutions to these issues as well. The open source community that the NUTS Foundation is bringing to fruition, prevents vendor-lock-in in crucial areas of the digital healthcare infrastructure. Emerging digital Personal Healthcare Areas can equally make use of the decentral administrative provisions which NUTS is working towards. The rationale behind NUTS – creating a utility for a crucial part of the digital healthcare architecture – particularly appeals to the expert panel. Expanding the foundation, which currently by and large relies on a single company, will further increase the support for this initiative.

In order to give the NUTS Foundation the opportunity to further realize its ideals and to propagate these more widely, the expert panel has decided to confer this year’s Dutch Privacy Award for business solutions to the NUTS Foundation.

Winner: Candle

Privacy-friendly smart home solution

Candle is a reaction to a risk analysis (privacy by design) to Internet of Things products which unnecessarily connect to a cloud server. It’s a project which concentrates on developing alternative smart systems in and around the home, based on the principle that connection to the internet is unnecessary. Candle started off as a project organization run by students from universities and colleges of higher education as well as by artists’ collectives who aimed at developing practical hardware solutions combined with open source software. Various domestic appliances such as central heating, cameras, CO2 sensors and other applications can easily be connected with one another. A switch is used to make contact with an external network. Users make a deliberate choice when they import and export emails and other data.

Candle shows that it’s very well feasible to create a Smart solution without Big Tech companies and their data driven models. Meanwhile, there are various concept solutions which companies can actually put into practice. In its core, Candle is privacy by design and it opens people’s eyes to alternative smart systems.

"The market for ethical technology will grow in much the same way as the market for biological food has grown enormously. But how do we boost this market? That’s the challenge. The GDPR has ploughed the earth. Now it’s time to sow and entrust this concept to consumers", comments Candle.

Nominations

There are four categories in which applicants are awarded:

1. the category of Consumer solutions (business-to-consumer)

2. the category of Business solutions (within a company or business-to-business)

3. the category of Public services (public authority-to-citizen)

4. The incentive prize for a ground breaking technology or person.

From the various entries, the independent expert panel chose the following nominees per category:

During the National Privacy Conference the nominees presented their projects to the audience in Award pitches. Thereafter, the Awards were handed out. Click HERE for the entire expert panel report (pdf), which includes participation criteria and explanatory notes on all the nominees and winners.

National Privacy Conference

The National Privacy Conference is a ECP|Platform for the Information Society and Privacy First initiative. Once a year, the conference brings together Dutch industry, public authorities, the academic community and civil society with the aim to build a privacy-friendly information society. The mission of both the National Privacy Conference and Privacy First is to turn the Netherlands into a guiding nation in the field of privacy. To this end, privacy by design is key.

These were the speakers during the 2020 National Privacy Conference in successive order:

- Monique Verdier (vice chairman of Dutch Data Protection Authority)
- Richard van Hooijdonk (trendwatcher/futurist) and Bas Filippini (founder and chairman of Privacy First)
- Tom Vreeburg (IT-auditor)
- Coen Steenhuisen (privacy advisor at Privacy Company)
- Peter Fleischer (global privacy counsel at Google)
- Sander Klous (professor in Big Data Eco Systems, University of Amsterdam)
- Kees Verhoeven (Member of the Dutch House of Representatives for D66).

Expert panel of the Dutch Privacy Awards

The independent expert award panel consists of privacy experts from different fields:

• Bas Filippini, founder and chairman of Privacy First
• Paul Korremans, partner at Comfort Information Architects and Privacy First board member
• Marie-José Bonthuis, owner of IT’s Privacy
• Esther Janssen, attorney at Brandeis Attorneys specialized in information law and fundamental rights
• Marc van Lieshout, managing director at iHub, Radboud University Nijmegen
• Melanie Rieback, CEO and co-founder of Radically Open Security
• Nico Mookhoek, privacy lawyer and owner of NMLA
• Wilmar Hendriks, founder of Control Privacy and member of the Privacy First advisory board
• Alex Commandeur, senior advisor at BMC Advies.

In order to make sure that the award process is run objectively, the panel members may not judge on any entry of his or her own organization.

Privacy First organizes the Dutch Privacy Awards with the support of the Democracy & Media Foundation and in collaboration with ECP. Would you like to become a partner of the Dutch Privacy Awards? Then please contact Privacy First!

In the context of the National Privacy Conference organized by Privacy First and ECP today the Dutch Privacy Awards have been handed out. These Awards offer a podium to organisations that consider privacy as an opportunity to positively distinguish themselves and want privacy-friendly entrepreneurship and innovation to become a benchmark. The winners of the 2019 Dutch Privacy Awards are Startpage.com as well as Privacy Company & SURF. PublicSpaces received the incentive prize.

Winner: Startpage.com

With Private Search 2.0, Startpage.com allows those who find profiling and targeting on the basis of search queries oppressing, to breathe a little more freely again. The basic promise of Startpage is that its users can question Google Search without having to fear that Google accords a permanent data trail to every single query. Moreover, Startpage.com enables searching through an anonymizing proxy. It therefore meets the needs of anyone who doesn’t want to be confronted with targeted ads on the basis of search queries. Think of people who search for information related to financial, relationship or health problems. And naturally any other person who, by default, wishes to stay clear of foreign companies that trade in personal data (based in Silicon Valley and elsewhere). Startpage.com thus offers people an important and very privacy-friendly opportunity to visit websites without having to worry about unwanted profiling and without being confronted with one’s own search behavior.

Winner: Privacy Designer (Privacy Company and SURF)

Privacy Designer is a Privacy Company and SURF web app which helps SMEs, associations and NGOs to identify privacy risks. The app has been co-financed by the SIDN Fund and can be used free of charge.

The expert panel was deeply impressed by this solution. It’s a practical and innovative app which has a large impact on society because research points out that the target group is often insufficiently aware of the privacy risks to which it is exposed and doesn’t quite know how to deal with such risks appropriately. Another advantage of Privacy Designer is the fact that all data is stored on one’s own device and the use of personal data is kept to a minimum. In short, this entry can potentially improve the privacy of a large group of people in an effective and accessible way.

Winner: PublicSpaces

There is a lot that goes on online that internet users can’t see and are not aware of. Advertising displayed on the basis of search behavior can be a great annoyance. Meanwhile, we become increasingly dependent on online information gathering, navigation and cloud storage. This makes a few dominant commercial companies ever more powerful.

PublicSpaces is a coalition of public broadcasters and cultural organizations that aim to ‘repair’ the internet by restoring it to a community of users. They try to do so by collaborating with a number of relevant parties and by offering alternatives. In particular, the fact that data so easily ends up across different platforms is a thorn in the eye of PublicSpaces. With open source initiatives and the use of IRMA (‘I Reveal my Attributes’, an open source identity platform which won a Dutch Privacy Award last year), the coalition attempts to improve online privacy. The expert panel wholeheartedly encourages PublicSpaces’ mission.

Nominations

There are four categories in which applicants are awarded:

1. the category of Consumer solutions (business-to-consumer)

2. the category of Business solutions (within a company or business-to-business)

3. the category of Public services (public authority-to-citizen)

4. The incentive prize for a ground breaking technology or person.

From the various entries, the independent expert panel chose the following nominees per category:

During the Dutch National Privacy Conference the nominees presented their projects to the audience in Award pitches. Thereafter, the Awards were handed out. Click HERE for the entire expert panel report (Dutch pdf), which includes participation criteria and explanatory notes on all the nominees and winners.

National Privacy Conference

The National Privacy Conference is a ECP|Platform for the Information Society and Privacy First initiative. Once a year, this conference brings together Dutch industry, public authorities, the academic community and civil society with the aim to build a privacy-friendly information society. The mission of both the National Privacy Conference and Privacy First is to turn the Netherlands into a guiding nation in the field of privacy and data protection. To this end, privacy by design is key.

These were the speakers during the 2019 National Privacy Conference in successive order:

Aleid Wolfsen (chairman of the Dutch Data Protection Authority)
Sophie in ‘t Veld (Member of the European Parliament)
Tijmen Schep (PrivacyLabel)
Brenno de Winter (IT researcher)
Jeroen Terstegge (Privacy Management Partners).

Expert panel of the Dutch Privacy Awards

The independent expert Award panel consists of privacy experts from different fields:

• Bart van der Sloot, senior researcher at Tilburg University (panel chairman)
• Bas Filippini, founder and chairman of Privacy First
• Paul Korremans, data protection & security professional at Comfort Information Architects (and Privacy First board member)
• Marie-José Bonthuis, IT’s Privacy owner
• Esther Janssen, attorney specialized in information law and fundamental rights, Brandeis Attorneys
• Esther Keymolen, philosopher of technology, TILT, Tilburg University
• Matthijs Koot, senior security specialist, Secura BV
• Marc van Lieshout, senior researcher at TNO and managing director at PI.lab
• Wendeline Sjouwerman, privacy specialist who focuses on local governments and health care.

In order to make sure that the Award process is run objectively, the panel may not judge on any entry of his or her own organization.

Privacy First organizes the Dutch Privacy Awards with the support of the Democracy & Media Foundation and in collaboration with ECP. Would you like to become a partner or sponsor of the Dutch Privacy Awards? Then please contact Privacy First!

Writing a New Year’s Column about the state of affairs concerning the protection of everyone’s privacy weighs me down this year. With the exception of a few bright spots, privacy in the Netherlands and the rest of the world has greatly deteriorated. For a while it seemed that the revelations of Edward Snowden in 2013 about secret services tracking everyone’s online behavior would be a rude wake-up call for the world. It was thought that an increasing number of data breaches and a rising number of governments and companies getting hacked, would make people realize that large amounts of data stored centrally is not the solution. The Arab Spring in 2015 would bring about major change through the unprecedented use of (social) media.

The European Union successfully voted against the exchange of data relating to travel movements, paved the way for the current General Data Protection Regulation and seemed to become the shining alternative example under the guidance of Germany, a country known for its vigilance when it comes to privacy. Unfortunately, things turned out differently. Under the Obama administration, Snowden was shunned as a traitor and other whistleblowers were clamped down on harder than ever before. Julian Assange was forced into exile while murdering people with the use of drones and without any form of trial was implemented on a large scale. Extrajudicial killings with collateral damage... While the discussion was about waterboarding... Discussions on such ‘secondary topics’ have by now become commonplace in politics, and so has the framing and blaming of opponents in the polarized public debate (the focus is usually on the person rather than on the argument itself).

Looking back on 2018, Privacy First identifies a great number of areas where the breakdown of privacy is evident:

Government & privacy

In March, an advisory referendum in the Netherlands was held on the introduction of the so-called Tapping law. Immediately after that, the referendum was abrogated. This happened in a time of unprecedented technological possibilities to organize referendums in various ways in a shared democracy. That’s outrageous. The outcome of the referendum was not taken into account and the Tapping law was introduced just like that. Moreover, it turned out that all along, the Dutch Minister of the Interior had withheld an important report on the functioning of the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service.

Apparently this was nothing to worry about and occurred without any consequences. The recent report by the Dutch State Commission on the (re)introduction of referendums will likely end up in a drawer, not to be looked at again.

Fear of losing one’s role and the political mood of the day are all too important in a culture in which ‘professional politicians’ are afraid to make mistakes, but which is full of incidents nonetheless. One’s job or profession comes first, representing citizens comes second. Invariably, incidents are put under a magnifying glass in order to push through binding legislation with a broad scope. Without the review of compliance with guiding principles such as necessity, purpose limitation, subsidiarity and proportionality. There is an ever wider gap between government and citizens, who are not trusted but are expected to be fully transparent towards that self-same government. A government that time and again appears to be concealing matters from citizens. A government that is required by law to protect and promote privacy, but is itself still the most prominent privacy-violator.

The medical establishment & privacy

In this area things got really out of hand in 2018. Through various coordinated media offensives, the EU and the member states are trying to make us believe in the advantages of relinquishing our right to physical integrity and our humanity. Sharing biometric data with the United States continues unabatedly. We saw the police calling for compulsory DNA databases, compulsory vaccination programs, the use of smart medicines with microchips and the phasing out of alternative therapies. Furthermore, health insurance companies cautiously started to cover genetic testing and increasingly doing away with medical confidentiality, the Organ Donation Act was introduced and microchips implanted in humans (the cyborg as the highest ideal in Silicon Valley propaganda) became ever more popular.

How long before microchips become compulsory for all citizens? All (domestic) animals in the EU have already preceded us. And then there’s the Electronic Health Record, which was first rejected in the Dutch Senate but has reappeared on the minister’s agenda via a detour. Driven by commercial interests, it is being rammed down the throats of general practitioners while alternatives such as Whitebox are not taken seriously. The influence of Big Pharma through lobbying with government bodies and participating in government working groups is particularly acute. They closely cooperate with a few IT companies to realize their ideal of large and centralized networks and systems. It’s their year-end bonus and growth at the expense of our freedom and well-being.

Media & privacy

Naturally, we cannot overlook ‘fake news’. One of the premises for having privacy is being able to form your own opinion and respect and learn from the opinions of others. Furthermore, independent left and right-wing media are essential in a democratic constitutional State. It's their task to monitor the functioning of elected and unelected representatives in politics and in government. Journalists should be able to penetrate into the capillaries of society in order to produce local, national and global news.

Ever since free news gathering came about, it has been a challenge to obtain news based on facts. It’s not always easy to distinguish a press service, PR and propaganda from one another. In times of rapid technological changes and new opportunities, they should be continuously reviewed according to the principles of journalism. That’s nothing new. What is new, however, is that the European Union and our own Minister for the Interior, Kajsa Ollongren, feel they’re doing the right thing by outsourcing censorship to social media companies that are active on a global scale and have proven to be unreliable.

While Facebook and Google have to defend themselves in court for spreading fake news and censoring accounts, the governments hand over the monitoring task to them. The privacy violators and fake news distributors as the guardians of our privacy and journalism. That’s the world upside down. By so doing, this minister and this government undermine the constitutional State and show disdain for intelligent citizens. It’s time for a structural change in our media system, based on new technologies such as blockchain and the founding of a government media office whose task is to fund all media outlets through citizens’ contributions, taking into account the media’s scope and number of members. So that concerns all media, including the so-called alternative media, which should not be censored.

Finance & privacy

The erosion of one’s privacy increasingly manifests itself at a financial level too. The fact of the matter is, that the tax authorities already know in detail what the spending pattern of all companies and citizens looks like. Thanks to the Tapping Law, they can now pass on this information in real-time to the secret services (the General Intelligence and Security Service is watching along). Furthermore, a well-intended initiative such as PSD2 is being introduced in a wholly improvident and privacy-unfriendly way: basic conditions relating to the ownership of bank details (of citizens, account holders) are devoid of substance. Simple features such as selective sharing of banking details, for example according to the type of payment or time period, are not available. What’s more, payment details of third parties who have not given their consent, are sent along.

In the meantime, the ‘cash = criminal’ campaign goes on relentlessly. The right to cash and anonymous payment disappears, despite even the Dutch Central Bank now warning that the role of cash is crucial to our society. Privacy First has raised its opinion on this topic already in 2016 during a public debate. The latest development in this regard is the further linking of information through Big Data and profiling by debt-collecting agencies and public authorities. Excluding citizens from the electronic monetary system as a new form of punishment instead of letting them pay fines is a not so distant prospect. In this regard, a lot of experimentation is going on in China and there have been calls in Europe to move in the same direction, supposedly in order to fight terrorism. In other words, in the future it will become increasingly difficult to raise your voice and organize against abuse of power by governments and companies: from on high it takes only the press of a button and you may no longer be able to withdraw cash, travel or carry out online activities. In which case you have become an electronic outcast, banished from society.

Public domain & privacy

In 2018, privacy in public space has all but improved. Whereas 20 years ago, the Netherlands was deemed too small to require everyone out on the streets to be able to identify themselves, by now, all governments and municipalities in Europe are developing ‘smart city’ concepts. If you ask what the benefits and use of a smart city are (beyond the permanent supervision of citizens), proponents will say something vague about traffic problems and that the 'killer applications' will become visible only once the network of beacons is in place. In other words, there are absolutely no solid figures which would justify the necessity, subsidiarity and proportionality of smart cities. And that’s not even taking basic civil rights such as privacy into consideration.

Just to give a few examples:

• ANPR legislation applies from 1 January 2019 (all travel movements on public roads will be stored in a centralized police database for four weeks)
• A database consisting of all travel movements and stays of European citizens and toll rates as per 2023
• Emergency chips in every vehicle with a two-way communication feature (better known as spyware) as per 1 January 2019
• Cameras and two-way communication in public space, built into the lampposts among other objects as part of smart city projects
• A decision to introduce additional cameras in public transport as per 2019
• The introduction of Smart Cities and the introduction of unlimited beacons (doesn’t it sound so much better than electronic concentration camp posts?)
• Linking together all traffic centers and control rooms (including those of security companies operating on the private market)
• Citizens are permanently monitored by invisible and unknown eyes.

Private domain & privacy

It’s well known that governments and companies are keen to take a peek in our homes, but the extent to which this was being advanced last year, was outside of all proportion. Let’s start with energy companies, who foist compulsory smart meters on citizens. By way of ‘appointment to install a smart meter’, which you didn’t ask for, it’s almost impossible to stay clear of red tape. After several cancellations on my part and phone calls to energy provider Nuon, they simply continued to push forward. I still don’t have a smart meter and it will stay like that.

Once again Silicon Valley featured prominently in the news in 2018. Unelected dictatorial executives who are no less powerful than many a nation state, promote their utopias as trendy and modern among citizens. Self-driving cars take the autonomy and joy away from citizens (the number of accidents is very small considering the millions of cars on the road each day), while even children can tell that a hybrid approach is the only option. The implementation of smart speakers by these social media companies is downright spooky. By bringing smart toys onto the market, toy manufacturers equally respond to the needs that we all seem to have. We can all too readily guess what these developments will mean for our privacy. The manipulation of facts and images as well as distortion, will starkly increase.

Children & privacy

Children and youths represent the future and nothing of the above bodes well for them. Screen addiction is sharply on the rise and as children are being raised amidst propaganda and fake news, much more attention should go out to forming one’s own opinion and taking responsibility. Centralized pupil monitoring systems are introduced indifferently in the education system, information is exchanged with parents and not having interactive whiteboards and Ipads in the classroom has become unthinkable. The first thing children see every single day, is a screen with Google on it... Big Brother.

Dependence on the internet and social media results in impulsive behaviour among children, exposes them to the madness of the day and affects their historical awareness and ability to discern underlying links. The way of thinking at universities is becoming increasingly one-sided and undesirable views are marginalized. The causes of problems are not examined, books are not read though there is certainly no lack of opinions. It’s all about making your voice heard within the limits of self-censorship that’s in force in order to prevent becoming the odd one out in the group. The same pattern can be identified when it comes to forming opinions in politics, where discussing various issues based on facts seems no longer possible. Not to mention that the opinions of citizens are considered irrelevant by our politicians. Good quality education focused on forming opinions and on creating self-reflective minds instead of a robot-way of thinking, is essential for the development of a healthy democracy.

Are there any positive developments?

It's no easy task to identify any positive developments in the field of privacy. The fact is that the introduction of the GDPR and the corresponding option to impose fines has brought privacy more sharply into focus among companies and citizens than the revelations of Snowden have been able to do. The danger of the GDPR, however, is that it narrows down privacy to data protection and administrative red tape.

Another positive development is the growing number of (as of yet small) initiatives whereby companies and governments consider privacy protection as a business or PR opportunity. This is proved by the number of participants in the 2019 Dutch Privacy Awards. Recurring themes are means of anonymous communication (email, search engines, browsers), possible alternatives to social networks (messaging services like WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) on the basis of subscriptions, blockchain technology and privacy by design projects by large organizations and companies.

Privacy First has teamed up with a few top quality pro bono attorneys who are prepared to represent us in court. However, judges are reluctant to go off the beaten track and come up with progressive rulings in cases such as those concerning number plate parking, average speed checks, Automatic Number Plate Recognition, the Tapping Law, etc. For years, Privacy First has been suffering from a lack of funding. Many of those who sympathize with us, find the topic of privacy a bit eerie. They support us morally but don’t dare to make a donation. After all, you draw attention to yourself when you’re concerned with issues such as privacy. That’s how bad things have become; fear and self-censorship... two bad counsellors! It’s high time for a government that seriously deals with privacy issues.

Constitutional reform should urgently be placed on the agenda

Privacy First is a great proponent of constitutional reform (see our 2017 New Year’s column about Shared Democracy), based on the principles of the democratic constitutional State and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Our democracy is only 150 years old and should be adapted to this current day and age. This means that the structure of the EU should be changed. Citizens should take on a central and active role. Government policies should focus on technological developments in order to reinforce democracy and formulate a response to the concentration of power of multinational companies.

Privacy First argues that the establishment of a Ministry of Technology has the highest priority in order to be able to stay up to date with the rapid developments in this field and produce adequate policies accordingly. It should live up to the standards of the ECHR and the Dutch Constitution and avoid becoming a victim of the increasing lobbying efforts in this sector. Moreover, it is time for a Minister of IT & Privacy who stays up to date on all developments and acts with sufficient powers and in accordance with the review of a Constitutional Court.

The protection of citizens’ privacy should be facilitated and there should be privacy-friendly alternatives for current services by technology companies. For 2019, Privacy First has a few tips for ordinary citizens:

• Watch out for and stay away from ‘smart’ initiatives on the basis of Big Data and profiling!
• Keep an eye on the ‘cash = criminal’ campaign. Make at least 50% of your payments anonymously in cash.
• Be cautious when communicating through Google, Apple, Facebook and Microsoft. Look for or develop new platforms based on Quantum AI encryption and use alternative browsers (TOR), networks (VPN) and search engines (Startpage).
• Be careful when it comes to medical data and physical integrity. Use your right for there to be no exchange of medical data as long as initiatives such as Whitebox are not used.
• Be aware of your right to stay anonymous, at home and in public space. Campaign against toll payment, microchips in number plates, ANPR and number plate parking.
• Be aware of your legal rights to bring lawsuits, for example against personalized waste disposal passes, camera surveillance, etc.
• Watch out for ‘smart’ meters, speakers, toys and other objects in the house connected to the internet. Purchase only privacy by design solutions with privacy enhanced technology!

The Netherlands and Europe as guiding nations in the field of privacy, with groundbreaking initiatives and solutions for apparent contradictions concerning privacy and security issues - that’s Privacy First's aim. There’s still a long way to go, however, and we’re being blown off course ever more. That’s due in part because a comprehensive vision on our society and a democracy 3.0 is lacking. So we continue to drift rudderless, ending up in the big manipulation machine of large companies one step at a time. We need many more yellow vests before things change. Privacy First would like to contribute to shaping and promoting a comprehensive, positive vision for the future. A future based on the principles that our society was built on and the need for greater freedom, with all the inevitable restrictions this entails. We will have to do it together. Please support Privacy First actively with a generous donation for your own freedom and that of your children in 2019!

To an open and free society! I wish everyone a lot of privacy in 2019 and beyond!

Bas Filippini, Privacy First chairman

Below, in alphabetical order, are Privacy First’s main objections against the new Dutch Intelligence and Security Services Act (Wiv2017, or ‘Tapping law’):   

A. Authority to hack 
Under the new law, the Dutch intelligence services will be able to hack a target through innocent third parties. By hacking a third party (for example an aunt, a sister, a friend, a husband, a grandfather, a colleague, a neighbour, a public authority, a company, etc.), information can be obtained about the target. In other words, any devices of innocent citizens may be hacked by the intelligence services. Citizens will never be notified about this, as there is no duty to inform.

C. Chilling effect
The new law may result in people behaving differently (either consciously or not) than they would do in a free environment. This can have a negative effect on the exercise of their fundamental rights other than the right to privacy, for instance on the right to freedom of expression and the right to freedom of association, assembly and demonstration. 

Criminal offences
Under both the current as well as the new law, Dutch secret agents are authorized to commit criminal offences. However, up until now, the exact scope of this power has been unknown. Under the current law, this power could be further regulated through a (never introduced) General Administrative Order. A number of years ago, the Dessens Commission recommended introducing such a General Administrative Order after all.  In the new Tapping law however, the foundation for this General Administrative Order has been scrapped, leaving behind a legal vacuum. 

D. Databases
The new law enables automatic access to databases in both the entire private and public sector. This allows intelligence services direct access to various sensitive databases of companies, public authorities and other organizations, either through informants and agents (infiltrators), or through secret agreements.   

Dragnet
The power to conduct ‘research-oriented interception’, popularly known as the ‘trawl net method’ or the ‘the dragnet-surveillance power’, allows intelligence and security agencies (secret services) to tap the internet traffic of large groups of people simultaneously. They may tap a particular municipality, neighbourhood, local community or street, in case one of their targets happens to live there. This entails monitoring the communications of innocent citizens by means of a digital dragnet. Privacy First believes that the data of innocent citizens do not belong in the hands of intelligence services. Apart from that, the collection of huge amounts of data makes the intelligence services less effective. 

Decryption order
Under the new law, encrypted data in the possession of companies, public authorities and individuals (for example communications data) must be decrypted on the request of secret services. Refusing to comply with a decryption order will be punished with a maximum of two years’ imprisonment. 

DNA database
Under the Tapping law, the intelligence and security services will have their own DNA database. They may collect DNA of targets and non-targets (innocent citizens). In order to collect DNA, they are allowed to grant themselves access to confined places, such as offices or residences. Dutch magazine Groene Amsterdammer has recently written an extensive article about the DNA Collection Service. 

E. European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)
The right to privacy is a human right: this right is protected by article 8 of the ECHR. Privacy First is of the opinion that the new Tapping law violates the right to privacy. We are ready to start interim injunction proceedings (lawsuit) against the Dutch government in case the Tapping law comes into force. This would enable a judge to scrutinize the new Act and possibly render it (partly) inoperative on account of violation of article 8 ECHR.

Exchange of data
The data of innocent citizens and journalists that are collected through the use of internet dragnet surveillance can be shared with foreign intelligence agencies before first being evaluated by the Dutch agencies. 

F. Fake news from the Dutch government
According to the Dutch Minister of the Interior Kajsa Ollongren, it’s not necessary that the government puts neutral information about the Tapping law referendum on its website rijksoverheid.nl. This means that the Dutch government does not provide objective information to voters.

G. Guarantees
The law gives too much power to intelligence and security services and too little privacy guarantees to citizens. After the Tapping law referendum, the law will have to go back to the legal drawing board, where proper privacy guarantees should be added and the exercise of powers be reviewed.  

H. Human rights
Privacy is a human right. The right to protection of one’s private life applies to everyone and is being guaranteed by numerous international and European treaties. The Tapping law will massively violate this right, considering the fact that it allows for the collection, storage and international exchange of data of large groups of innocent citizens.    

Hyping the terror threat
Proponents of the Tapping law have often put forward the argument that it will prevent terror attacks, as was shown by Dutch television show Zondag met Lubach.  However, other countries have already shown that working in a focused, targeted way is much more effective. Opponents of the Tapping law agree that the current law needs to be updated, but they demand that the law be modified and improved in crucial aspects.

I. I’ve got nothing to hide
Everyone is entitled to having a private life. That’s why the data of innocent citizens do not belong to intelligence and security agencies. It’s important for these data, which include medical information, personal conversations, private emails, work-related emails, news stories, hobbies, interests and internet search results, to be protected properly. You may have ‘nothing’ to hide, but other citizens, like medical professionals, attorneys, activists, whistle-blowers and journalists certainly do. 

Interception of cable-bound data
It is falsely being argued that the intelligence and security services are currently allowed to intercept data over the ether (non cable-bound) only and not any cable-bound data. Under current legislation, they may intercept cable-bound data when the target concerns, for example, a particular individual. Under the new law, secret services will be authorized to intercept cable-bound data on a large scale and without specific targets (the dragnet method).

Internet of Things
An ever increasing number of devices are connected to the internet. All these devices can be tapped and hacked under the new Tapping law. Think of a car, a camera, microphone, printer and perhaps even a pacemaker. After all, the Tapping law doesn’t exclude this possibility.

J. Journalists
The communications of journalists may be intercepted under the new Tapping law by means of dragnet surveillance, among other ways. Secret services may acquire knowledge about this confidential information. This constitutes a threat to the freedom of the press and the journalistic right to non-disclosure of sources. Only retrospectively will secret services delete information that turns out not to be useful for any investigation. 

Judge
In most cases, a judicial verification of the exercise of powers is lacking. As explained under ‘Review Board for the Use of Powers’(TIB), the new Review Board lacks the investigatory powers for effective and independent monitoring. 

L. Lubach
In his tv programme Zondag met Lubach, comedian and television presenter Arjen Lubach has looked into the Tapping law three times, explaining why it’s good to be critical about it. You can watch the videos (in Dutch) here: Tapping law 1, Tapping law 2 and Tapping law 3.

M. Medical confidentiality
Under the new law, the medical confidentiality of patients and the medical secrecy of doctors cannot be guaranteed: secret services can make a request to anyone, including doctors and hospitals, to hand over relevant data and to grant access to their data system (Electronic Health Record). They can also hack into such systems. This can lead to the evasion of health care among patients, which could endanger national health. 

N. Notification obligation
Under the new law, the notification obligation is insufficient.  Five years after exercising a certain power, the person concerned should, in principle, be notified about this. This, however, applies to only a few of the newly introduced powers. Privacy First thinks the notification obligation should apply to the exercise of all powers.

O. Other countries
Under the new Tapping law, data that have been collected may be shared with other countries without being evaluated first. This means that Dutch intelligence services can share unseen and unselected data (of innocent citizens) with foreign secret services. Once the data have been shared, Dutch intelligence services won’t be able to monitor the use of these data anymore. 

P. Presumption of innocence
With the introduction of the new law, the presumption of innocence gets inverted. The dragnet-surveillance makes every single citizen a potential suspect, without any concrete ground to monitor someone in particular. Moreover, large-scale data collection increases the chance of false positives.

Q. Quest for data
The Dutch government has developed an enormous thirst for data. Whereas neighbouring countries go back to a target-centric approach, the Netherlands embraces Big Data. This leads to an ever growing haystack in which finding the needle will become increasingly difficult. More data is no equivalent to more security. 

R. Review Board for the Use of Powers (TIB)
Independent supervision in all phases of the exercise of powers by secret services (before, during and afterwards) is insufficiently guaranteed. Since intelligence services operate secretly, citizens against whom such powers are exercised cannot object to this themselves. That’s why the exercise of powers is to be reviewed independently. The new Review Board for the Use of Powers (Toetsingscommissie Inzet Bevoegdheden) reviews beforehand whether the minister has rightfully given approval for the exercise of a relatively far-reaching (‘special’) power under the new law. This review is substantiated by less guarantees than the review by a judge. Furthermore, the Review Board doesn’t have any investigative powers of its own and is completely dependent on the information it’s provided with by others. Various authorities, such as the Dutch Data Protection Authority, have warned that the Review Board shouldn’t become a 'rubber stamping machine'. 

Review Committee on the Intelligence and Security Services (CTIVD)
The judgments of the Review Committee on the Intelligence and Security Services, which retrospectively reviews whether or not powers have been applied lawfully, are not binding. The Minister of the Interior may not take the findings and recommendations into account and continue to unlawfully use powers.

S. Security
Privacy and security are unduly placed on opposite sides of the balance. In a free and democratic society, privacy and security go hand in hand. It’s possible to draft an Intelligence and Security Services Act that has good privacy safeguards under which information of innocent citizens doesn't end up in the hands of intelligence agencies.

Storage period
Unevaluated data that have been collected through ‘dragnet surveillance, may be stored for three years. These data may also be shared with other countries, even without first being evaluated. Data that the intelligence and security agencies deem relevant may be kept for as long as they are regarded as such.

Z. Zero days
The intelligence and security services have the power to make use of unknown software vulnerabilities, so called zero-days. Such vulnerabilities are known to them, but not to the creator or manufacturer of the software. They don’t have to notify the manufacturer about it. This allows malicious parties to exploit vulnerabilities, even over longer time periods. It also creates a black market, where such vulnerabilities and data breaches are traded. 

This list is not exhaustive and can be supplemented at all times.

IRMA and ‘referendum students’ win Dutch Privacy Awards

In the context of the National Privacy Conference organized by Privacy First and ECP, today the very first Dutch Privacy Awards have been awarded. These Awards offer a podium to companies and governments that consider privacy as an opportunity to positively distinguish themselves and want privacy-friendly entrepreneurship and innovation to become a benchmark. The great winner of the 2018 Dutch Privacy Awards is IRMA (I Reveal My Attributes). The students who organized the Dutch referendum about the controversial Tapping law received the incentive prize.

Winner: IRMA (I Reveal my Attributes)

IRMA (I Reveal my Attributes) is a state of the art, open source identity platform which allows users to authenticate themselves by using an app on the basis of one or several attributes related to their different roles (contextual authentication). This form of authentication does not reveal one’s identity: a one-to-one relation between the user and the service provider makes brokers redundant and allows the former to use services anonymously, without a password and with minimal attributes.

The system has been developed by the Digital Security Research Group of the Radboud University Nijmegen. Since the end of 2016, IRMA is part of the independent Dutch Privacy by Design foundation.

The Awards panel praises the academic community for developing IRMA as a general purpose privacy-by-design application intended for both the private as well as the public sector. As a means of privacy-friendly authentication, the panel regards the innovative capacity of the open source technology used, the instant deployability and the potential impact on society of IRMA as great assets. That is why the panel unanimously chose IRMA as the winner of the 2018 Dutch Privacy Awards.

Winners: ‘Tapping law students’

On the initiative of five University of Amsterdam students, a national referendum about the new and controversial Dutch Intelligence and Security Services Act (‘Tapping law’) will be held on 21 March 2018. Regardless of the outcome of the referendum, one of its results will be a heightened awareness of and a more critical stand towards privacy issues among the Dutch. This fact alone was sufficient ground for the panel to unanimously reward the students with a Dutch Privacy Award (incentive prize).

Nominations

There are four categories in which applicants are awarded:

1. the category of Consumer solutions (from companies for consumers)

2. the category of Business solutions (within a company or business-to-business)

3. the category of Public services (public authorities to citizens)

4. The incentive prize for a ground breaking technology or person.

Out of the various entries, the independent expert panel chose the following nominees per category:

During the National Privacy Conference the nominees have presented their projects to the audience in Award pitches. Thereafter, the Awards were handed out. Click HERE for the entire Award panel report (pdf in Dutch), which includes participation criteria and explanatory notes on all the nominees and winners.

From left to right: Paul Korremans (panel member), Luca van der Kamp (‘referendum student’), Esther Bloemen (Personal Health Train), Nina Boelsums (‘referendum student’), Bas Filippini (panel chairman), Bart Jacobs (IRMA), Arjan van Diemen (TrustTester), Marie-José Hoefmans (Schluss) and Wilmar Hendriks (Youth Privacy Implementation Plan (municipality of Amsterdam). Photo: Maarten Tromp.

National Privacy Conference

The National Privacy Conference is an initiative of ECP (Dutch Platform for the Information Society) and Privacy First. From now on, the conference will bring together once a year Dutch industry, public authorities, the academic community and civil society with the aim to build a privacy-friendly information society. The mission of both the National Privacy Conference and Privacy First is to turn the Netherlands into a guiding nation in the field of privacy. To this end, privacy-by-design is key.

The speakers during the 2018 National Privacy Conference were, in successive order:

Aleid Wolfsen, chairman of the Dutch Data Protection Authority,
Gerrit-Jan Zwenne, professor of Law and the Information Society (University of Leiden),
Jaap-Henk Hoepman, associate professor Privacy by Design (Radboud University Nijmegen),

Ulco van de Pol, chairman of the Amsterdam Data Protection Commission,
Tim Toornvliet, Netherlands ICT,
Lennart Huizing, Privacy Company.

Aleid Wolfsen, chairman of the Dutch Data Protection Authority. Photo: Maarten Tromp.

Panel of the Dutch Privacy Awards

The independent expert Award panel consists of privacy experts from different fields:
• Bas Filippini, founder and chairman of Privacy First (panel chairman)
• Paul Korremans, data protection & security professional at Comfort Information Architects
• Marie-José Bonthuis, owner of IT’s Privacy
• Bart van der Sloot, senior researcher at Tilburg University
• Marjolein Lanzing, PhD Philosophy & Ethics, Eindhoven University of Technology.

In order to make sure that the award process is run objectively, the panel members may not judge on any entry of his or her own organization.

Privacy First organized this first edition of the Dutch Privacy Awards in collaboration with ECP, with the support of the Democracy & Media Foundation and the Adessium Foundation. Would you like to become a partner of the Dutch Privacy Awards? Then please contact Privacy First!

The Dutch government and Parliament aim to quickly introduce the privacy-violating Tapping law. A coalition of privacy advocates will start interim injunction proceedings to prevent this from happening.

Implementation of unaltered Tapping law imminent

In recent months, there has been a thorough public debate in the Netherlands about the new Dutch Intelligence and Security Services Act, the so-called ‘Tapping law’. In a referendum that was held on 21 March 2018, a majority of the Dutch citizenry voted AGAINST this act. In response to this, the Dutch government has promised only a few minor, superficial policy changes as well as a few non-fundamental legislative amendments. Both the Dutch government and the House of Representatives have with full intent pushed for a prompt entry into force of the Tapping law in its unaltered form, as per 1 May to be exact. The envisaged legislative amendments will be presented by the government only after the summer. Regrettably, a motion to postpone the implementation of the Tapping law until after these legislative amendments have been discussed, was yesterday repealed by the House of Representatives. With that, it seems Parliament has had its say and it is now again up to society to make a move.

Interim injunction proceedings

It is Privacy First’s established policy to try to prevent massive privacy violations. Unmistakeably, the implementation of the current Tapping law is a massive privacy breach, because as a result of it, there will be large-scale tapping into the Internet traffic of innocent citizens and, moreover, the data of innocent citizens will be exchanged with foreign secret services without first being evaluated. This is a blatant violation of the right to privacy. Therefore, we cannot wait for any possible legislative amendments that serve to ‘rectify retrospectively’. After all, by that time the violations will have already occurred. Today, a coalition of Privacy First and various other civil organizations and companies urge the government to postpone the introduction of the Tapping law (or at least those parts of it that constitute the gravest privacy violations) until all legislative amendments have been discussed in Parliament. In case the government refuses this request, our coalition will not hesitate to start interim injunction proceedings in order to enforce the postponement of the Tapping law before court.

Broad coalition

Alongside Privacy First, the coalition that has been created for these proceedings is comprised of the Netherlands Committee of Jurists for Human Rights (NJCM), Bits of Freedom, the Dutch Association of Criminal Defence Lawyers (NVSA), the Dutch Platform for the Protection of Civil Rights, Free Press Unlimited, BIT, Voys, Speakup, Greenpeace International, Waag Society and Mijndomein Hosting. The case is taken care of by Boekx Attorneys and is coordinated by the Public Interest Litigation Project (PILP) of the Netherlands Committee of Jurists for Human Rights. Apart from said interim injunction proceedings, since March 2017 Privacy First and other organizations are preparing a larger scale lawsuit in order for multiple parts of the Tapping law to be declared unlawful as it contravenes international and European privacy law.

Today, on behalf of the coalition, our attorneys will send a letter to the Dutch government (the ministers of the Interior and Defence) requesting the postponement of the implementation of the Tapping law. The government will have the opportunity to respond to this request until Friday, 20 April.

Update 20 April 2018: the government has rejected the appeal of the coalition. The coalition will now continue preparing interim injunction proceedings.

Update 17 May 2018: today the coalition summons has been sent to the Dutch state attorney; click HERE for the full version (pdf in Dutch). The summary proceedings will take place at the District Court of The Hague on Thursday 7 June 2018, 10.00 am - 12.00 pm CET.

Update 7 June 2018: this morning the hearing took place before the District Court of The Hague; click HERE for the pleading of our attorneys (pdf in Dutch). The court is expected to deliver a ruling on Tuesday, 26 June 2018.

Update 26 June 2018: to the great disappointment of Privacy First, today the District Court of The Hague has unfortunately rejected the case. Find the complete ruling (in Dutch) HERE. From a legal point of view, the bar was set high in these interim injunction proceedings: in order to be able to win our case, the judge had to declare the Tapping law ‘unequivocally ineffective’ on account of blatant (unequivocal) violation of international or European privacy law. However, the court ruling reads like a foregone conclusion in favor of the State, not least because various objections of our coalition have remained unidentified. That being said, it needs to be stressed (as the court itself does too), that this ruling constitutes only a preliminary opinion and that a thorough (‘full’) review was lacking in this case.

The coalition of organizations that has initiated these proceedings regrets the judgment. In view also of the result of the referendum, the coalition is of the opinion that the government should have waited to introduce the contested parts of the Tapping law until the parliamentary legislative process in response to the referendum is finished. Introducing the Tapping law unchanged on 1 May 2018 before proposing amendments at a later stage (after the summer) is and remains incorrect.

The coalition will soon discuss possible follow-up legal action.