Privacy violation or good policing? 1,700 cops read file of girl killed while biking

The Dutch Data Protection Authority has said it is “a highly serious issue and deeply distressing for the family and others involved,” after it was reported that around 1,700 police employees viewed the case file on the violent death of 17-year-old Lisa without proper authorization. The Dutch police union has defended the officers, with the union chair describing it as “proper police work.”

The authority stressed that personal information should be consulted only by staff who genuinely need it. “Especially the police are expected to understand how to handle sensitive data responsibly,” it said. The Dutch Data Protection Authority confirmed it will “definitely seek clarification” from the police.

Police union chair Nine Kooiman says she is troubled by the way officers are being portrayed and stresses the need to present a more balanced view to Lisa’s family. She acknowledges that snooping out of curiosity should be sanctioned, but the officers she has spoken with accessed the data in order to “be prepared to catch criminals.”

The police revealed on Tuesday that around 1,700 staff members had improperly searched records related to the violent murder case. Each officer must now meet with their superior to clarify the reasons for accessing the data.

Kooiman says the police leadership should have been more precise in how they announced the news on Tuesday. She stresses that most of the accessed systems were the incident app, which only contains limited details like control room reports. Full access to the case file, she notes, requires a password.

Lisa’s family said earlier Tuesday that it was “deeply painful and difficult to understand” that so many officers had looked up information.