SyRI risk-indication litigation · ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2020:865
District Court of The Hague · 5 February 2020
The Dutch SyRI system allowed public bodies to combine records to flag a risk of fraud involving benefits, taxes and other public schemes. A risk report could draw investigative attention to someone who had no practical way of seeing why the system had singled them out.
Why the statutory framework failed
The District Court accepted that tackling fraud served a legitimate public purpose. It examined how much information could be combined, the lack of transparency about the risk model and the safeguards for the people affected. It found that the framework failed to strike the fair balance required by Article 8 and declared the challenged provisions without binding effect. The judgment reviewed the system’s legal basis. It did not make a finding of fraud or innocence about any particular claimant.
If an automated flag leads to a decision
Distinguish the risk signal from the step an authority actually took, such as asking questions or stopping payment. Keep that notice and its reasons. Ask which records were used, whether any are inaccurate and how a person can obtain human review or challenge the decision. A different tool must be assessed on its own safeguards, purpose and legal basis.
Read the Dutch District Court judgment
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