According to the Dutch Data Protection Authority, approximately 530,000 visa applications are made every year. Applicants must provide ‘fingerprints, name, address, residence, country of birth, purpose of travel, nationality and photograph’, among other things. The system containing that information has been poorly secured for years. The ministry is aware of this but does nothing about it and as a result has been violating the law ‘for years, on a large scale and in a serious way’, according to the regulator.
In addition to the fine, the ministry will also receive a penalty of 50,000 euros for every two weeks that the system is not properly secured. This can be up to a maximum of 500,000 euros.
Visa applicants were also not properly informed about the sharing of the data. For this, the ministry received a penalty of 10,000 euros per week, up to a maximum amount of 300,000 euros, but according to the Dutch Data Protection Authority, this is now in order.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says in a response that the fine is based on an investigation ‘on two diplomatic posts in 2019. It is now 2022. Since the investigation, many improvements have already been made in the points we are addressed by the AP. ‘
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