UWV illegally collected data from benefit recipients through its website

The UWV, a government agency that handles benefits, illegally collected data from benefit recipients. The NOS and Nieuwsuur investigation found that beneficiary usage behavior on the UWV website was continuously analyzed and tracked by the agency to investigate whether they were staying abroad illegally while receiving unemployment benefits. It was revealed.

A Dutch welfare agency secretly placed cookies on its website to track users. This allowed the logged-in user to be identified and automatically associated with her IP address, his NOS investigation found.

Landsad Vokert, the government’s permanent law firm, closed the UWV system earlier this year because this systematic oversight went too far and there was no legal basis for excessive tracking of benefit recipients on its website. concluded that it was necessary to

Illegal online surveillance ultimately resulted in not only breaching data protection laws, but real benefit beneficiary fraudsters not being tracked. All 580 ongoing investigations were dropped, even though wrongdoing had already been proven. The Personal Data Protection Authority is now seeking clarifications from the enforcement agency.

The Dutch Welfare Agency responded by saying it regretted the lack of due attention. “UWV is a public service provider and we set high standards for that role.For our executive operations, this means that prudent behavior is very important. We feel very annoyed that we neglected to do that in the case,” the NOS said. report.

“It’s a shock,” said FNV union vice president Kitty John, who is also an advocate for benefit recipients. She is particularly angry about the treatment of unemployed citizens. “Again, we are targeting people who have just lost their jobs,” John said. “In Bralicum and Wassenaar there is a massive fraud by tax evaders, which is where we want them to get rid of the grid.”