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Technical audit · 16.06.2026

government.nl

Official portal of the Government of the Netherlands
NL

Government.nl is the official portal of the Government of the Netherlands (the English-language version of Rijksoverheid). Homepage scan: 35 requests total, 4 domains. The configuration is exemplary. There are only two external services, both government infrastructure: the government's centralized web-statistics platform, Piwik PRO, running in anonymized mode, and the government's own survey platform. The scan shows no Google Analytics, no Facebook, no advertising, no session recording, and no third-party commercial trackers. Not a single cookie was set during the session. The policy confirms that the statistics tool anonymizes IP addresses and does not intrude on privacy. No violations were recorded.

Request timeline

1487 ms · government web statistics
The government's centralized web-statistics platform loads, built on Piwik PRO. Per policy, IP is anonymized and the statistics do not intrude on privacy.
1842 ms · own survey platform
The government's own survey platform loads — a feedback-collection tool running on government infrastructure.
1925 ms · pageview sent
The statistics tool sends pageview data without parameters tied to a visitor identifier, consistent with anonymized mode.
statistics anonymized, no cookie set
The statistics tool is configured anonymously and, under the rules, is exempt from consent. Not a single cookie was set during the session. No third-party commercial services appear in the scan.

Declared versus actual

✓ Government statistics (Piwik PRO) — declared
✓ Survey (government platform) — declared

Detected trackers

Context

www.government.nl is the official portal of the Government of the Netherlands (the English-language version of Rijksoverheid): information on government policy, agencies, and services. The data controller is the Government of the Netherlands. The site is informational.

Scan: 35 requests to 4 domains, homepage, captured in a clean Edge browser without a VPN or ad blocker. The site runs on a government platform and uses only government services.

Who receives the data

There are no third-party commercial recipients.

There are only two external services, both government infrastructure: the government’s centralized web-statistics platform, built on Piwik PRO in anonymized mode, and the government’s own survey platform for collecting feedback. The scan shows no Google Analytics, no advertising networks, no social media pixels, and no session recording.

A full banner for the statistics is not required here: it is configured anonymously. The policy explicitly states that Piwik PRO anonymizes the IP address and that such statistics do not intrude on privacy, and are therefore exempt from consent. Not a single cookie was set during the entire session.

Only government services. Before any interaction, the government’s centralized, anonymized statistics and its own survey platform fire. The scan contains no Google analytics, no advertising domains, no social plugins, and no session recording.

Conclusion

Government.nl is a model of how a central government portal should be set up. There are only two external services, and both are government-run: the government’s anonymized web statistics and its own survey platform. There is no third-party advertising, no Google analytics, no social media pixels, and no session recording whatsoever, the statistics tool anonymizes IP, and no cookies are set. The key takeaway for the reader: a central government portal can manage perfectly well with its own anonymized statistics, and here that is achieved without a single third-party commercial tracker, as also confirmed by the policy. No violations were recorded.

Evidence

How to verify: download the file and compute its checksum — sha256sum file.har (Linux, macOS) or certutil -hashfile file.har SHA256 (Windows); it must match the one shown. The conclusions apply to the scope of this measurement — see the limitations of the method.

Original (audit)
HAR file: nl/government-nl-2026-06-16.har
SHA-256: 94dd5fd2e73cd2659d22b8e3954c675ade46e8b3b5a833ee2288f8942681d4fd
HAR files are stored on EU infrastructure (Proton Drive). SHA-256 is published for integrity verification.
Want a response from the company about this audit? → Open the tool

Fill in once — it will be inserted into every letter below:

All fields are required to print the document — this is a formal requirement of the letter itself (the particulars of an official submission), not data collection: nothing is sent or saved anywhere, it all stays in your browser and disappears when you close the page. See the methodology for details.

Step 1. Data access request (GDPR Art. 15)

Send this letter directly to the company first — before contacting the regulator it has the right to respond (GDPR Art. 12(3) — 30 days).

Subject: Data access request (GDPR Art. 15) — government.nl

To: [insert the company's address — DPO / support / legal department]
From: [Your name], [contact email]

I request access to my personal data processed in connection with the website government.nl.

1. Categories of data and purposes of processing (Art. 15(1)(a)-(c))
I request information on all categories, purposes, and recipients of my data processed on this site — regardless of whether any non-compliance has been identified to date.

2. Recipients, retention periods, and transfers outside the EEA (Art. 15(1)(c)-(d), 46)
I also request the full list of third-party recipients, the applicable retention period for each category, and the legal basis for any transfer of data outside the EEA. The full technical audit with evidence (saved network log, SHA-256 checksum) is published at: https://gdpru.eu/en/audits/nl-government-nl/

3. Automated processing and profiling (Art. 15(1)(h))
Please state whether I am subject to automated decision-making or profiling, and if so, disclose the logic involved.

Sincerely,

[Your name]
[contact email]
[Country]


[Date]