Privacy in practice
In control of your personal data
The more time we spend in the online world, the more important the question becomes about how we deal with personal data as a society. As a ‘carrier’ of large amounts of data, this issue keeps KPN busy on a daily basis. We regard the right to privacy as a major asset and we do everything we can to protect it.
The places where we’re located, the searches we conduct on the internet, the people we’re friends with on social media: almost without giving it a second thought, our lives are becoming ever more entwined with the online world. Whether we like it or not, we’re generating ever more data with our smartphones, tablets and computers. With the rise of the Internet of Things, there are also connected devices that communicate independently.
We see many opportunities and possibilities in this connected future. On the other hand, it also raises questions about how we should deal with all this sensitive data. Who can access it and who can’t? For what purposes? Within our organization, we’ve been ensuring that the discussion about privacy takes place on a social level. For example, with our XS4ALL brand, we’ve been involved in a number of court rulings that serve as the basis for legislation relating to internet use. In addition, the Privacy Office protects the privacy of customers of all KPN brands.
Trust
It’s not for nothing that privacy is an important issue for KPN: our networks handle terabytes of data every day. Customers can trust that these data are in good hands. Simply put: we never listen to or look at transmitted data. We deal with personal data confidentially too. Certain details can help us personalize our services, but customers decide what information they want to share or not. For example, KPN can only make a personal offer or give advice about a suitable contract after receiving explicit permission.
That said, there are exceptions where KPN is legally required to share certain personal data, such as a telephone number, with the police or judicial authorities. They must submit a special request, which we assess on a case by case basis.
We’ve listed our pledges to our customers in our privacy statement.
External watchdogs
We set ourselves strict rules about how we handle our customers’ data. The critical eye of outsiders helps us to do this even better in everyday practice. That’s why we give external watchdogs permanent access to our processes, to help spot potential weaknesses.
KPN is performing well when it comes to privacy, and this appears to be confirmed by the comments of these independent parties. For example, KPN is the first Dutch provider to be awarded a gold label Privacy Guarantee. This quality mark shows at a glance that we handle personal data with care. Read more about this on the Rankings and Awards page.