espionage

A majority of the lower house of Dutch parliament is very concerned about the communication system for the emergency services and police C2000, which is provided by a Chinese company. "Our communication systems must never be unnecessarily vulnerable", the VVD said. The ruling party and opposition parties GroenLinks, SP and PVV therefore call for the Netherlands to stop using Chinese software for vital infrastructure, RTL Nieuws reports. 

Out of fear of being eavesdropped on, Deputy Prime Minister Lodewijk Asscher did not dare to call Prime Minister Mark Rutte from his cellphone after flight MH17 was shot down in July 2014, Asscher said on television program Jinek. 

The Deputy Prime Minister was on holiday in France at the time. Instead of calling the Prime Minister from his mobile phone, he knocked on the door of a neighbor and asked if he could use her landline. "I had to talk to the Prime Minster in The Hague. That you don't do with your mobile. These discussioins might be of interest to Russians or others."

Hackers are increasingly targeting the Netherlands and cybercrime and digital espionage remain the biggest threats to the digital security in the country. This is greatly influenced by geopolitical developments, such as international conflicts and political sensitivities.

Minister Frans Timmermans of Foreign Affairs has announced that the three plane spotters who were held in the United Arab Emirates have been freed, and have been back in the Netherlands since Tuesday morning.

The round-up of some of this week's most noteworthy events and news stories features the debate around switching off freeway lights, the Netherlands having the fastest internet in Europe, three Dutch arrested in UAE for espionage, the Dutch army using by NSA encrypted phones, 1,200 kg heroin discovered in tomato paste, police hunting a missing man, Polare bookstores closing because of money problems, and an Amsterdam alderman who got beat protecting women on a tram.