Dutch websites illegally sharing data with TikTok: report
An earlier version of this article included "valkexclusief.nl" in the list of websites using the TikTok pixel, however the pixel was removed well before this article was published. Since this article was published, AZ temporarily stopped using the pixel, while Beeld en Geluid, VluchtelingenWerk, Saxion University of Applied Sciences and VPRO all removed the pixel with immediate effect in response to the investigative report.
At least 1,000 Dutch websites share their visitors’ data with TikTok, many doing so without the users’ consent, BNR reports based on research it commissioned from NerdyData.
The website contains code that shares information about visitors with the originally Chinese social media platform. The “TikTok pixel” informs the company of every site visit and transmits unique data that can be used to identify the user’s IP address.
At least 1,000 Dutch sites had such a TikTok pixel at some point this year, including the Rijksmuseum, Vluchtelingenwerk, and Wehkamp. Site visitors don’t need a TikTok account to be included in the data dragnet.
Large platforms like TikTok, Meta, and Google use this technique for targeted advertisements. The method is controversial but not illegal as long as users explicitly give permission and the website makes clear with whom it shares the data.
BNR visited the 50 most popular websites on the list and checked their consent boxes. Forty-five did not inform users that their personal data would be shared with TikTok. Seventeen, including the football club AZ and job site PlayToWork, shared the data even if the user did not give permission.
According to Cerrit Jan Zwenne, a professor of law and information society at Leiden University, these websites take a major risk and could face fines or even mass damage claims.
Privacy lawyer Menno Weij of BDO Legal thinks many companies don’t realize they’re breaking the rules. But they are still “responsible for the fact that they do not comply with privacy legislation,” he told BNR.
According to the broadcaster, these Dutch websites were using a TikTok pixel at the time of the publication:
- mauritshuis.nl
- Beeldengeluid.nl
- basic-fit.com/nl-nl
- vpro.nl
- wehkamp.nl
- greetz.nl
- psv.nl
- dehaagsehogeschool.nl
- actiefwerkt.nl
- playtowork.nl
- nmm.nl
- oranjefonds.nl
- saxion.nl
- tivolivredenburg.nl
- vluchtelingenwerk.nl
- savethechildren.nl
- az.nl
- oxfamnovib.nl
