How Dutch News Sites Track You

TL;DR - At a Glance

• Challenge: Even before users click "accept" on cookie banners, Dutch news sites load multiple hidden trackers-many of which are invisible to the average reader.
• Method: We used an AI-powered agentic browser to simulate real user visits and uncover what's being tracked, when, and by whom.
• Findings: All six tested news sites activated third-party tracking scripts on page load-including advertising networks, analytics tools, consent managers, and unknown domains.
• Insight: Consent isn't always a starting point-tracking often begins immediately. And even trusted media sites share tracker setups across their brands.
• Why it matters: These findings raise important questions about transparency, privacy, and what "consent" really means for readers today.

A Hidden Layer Beneath the Headlines

Opening a news site might feel like catching up on current affairs, but beneath the surface, a silent exchange of data is already underway. Using an AI-powered browser tool-think of it as a digital detective-we investigated six of the most popular Dutch news websites to find out who's tracking you, and what they do with that information.

What we discovered: even before you give consent, multiple third-party trackers are already active-collecting data, sharing it, and profiling you in ways most people never see.

The Sites We Tested

We scanned the homepages of:

• NOS.nl - Dutch public broadcaster
• NRC.nl - Quality, subscription-based journalism
• NU.nl - Mass-market news from DPG Media
• AD.nl - National & regional news (also DPG)
• Trouw.nl - Ethically positioned newspaper (DPG)
• Telegraaf.nl - Commercial, tabloid-style news

Each site was analysed live using an agentic browser-a smart tool that detects, categorises, and explains every third-party domain loaded in real time.

What Is Tracking-And Why Does It Matter?

When you visit a news site, you're not just seeing headlines. Behind the scenes, companies load scripts, pixels, and invisible elements onto your device. These trackers record what pages you view, your location, device type, and even your preferences for privacy.

This data powers personalised advertising, site analytics, and content recommendations-but it also contributes to detailed user profiles and cross-site tracking, often without your knowledge.

So, Who's Tracking You?

Across all six sites, we found a mix of:

• Ad trackers (e.g. doubleclick.net from Google)
• Analytics tools (e.g. scorecardresearch.com, dpgmedia.net)
• Consent managers (e.g. consensu.org, which logs your privacy choices)
• Social media plugins (e.g. facebook.com trackers)
• Unknown or obscure trackers (like reklama.io or dmp.viafoura.co)

Some of these trackers are well-known; others are smaller or newer ad-tech firms, rarely listed in mainstream filter lists. Regardless of their fame, they all collect pieces of your digital trail.

Tracker Types per Site

Here's a breakdown of the types of trackers we found on each site:

This makes it clear that even public and subscription-funded news sites run a diverse mix of trackers. Telegraaf loads the highest number of third-party trackers, while NRC is the least tracker-heavy.

Blockers Help-But Not Always

We compared what gets through in three common browser setups:

• Default Chrome: Trackers are invisible to the user.
• uBlock Origin: Blocks most ad and analytics scripts-but misses many consent trackers.
• Brave: Stronger by default, also blocks some consent systems.

Privacy tools like uBlock Origin and Brave block the majority of ad and analytics trackers, but permission scripts (such as those from Sourcepoint) and lesser-known domains are often not immediately blocked. Only in-depth agentic tools map all active trackers and infrastructures, giving users visibility into newly emerging or lesser-known forms of tracking.

Your Consent Travels Further Than You Think

Consent banners appear to offer control-but saying "yes" on one DPG Media site (like NU.nl) also activates tracking on others, like AD.nl and Trouw.nl. These brands use the same consent platform and analytics tools, creating a cross-site tracking profile based on a single click.

In short, your consent doesn't just stay with the page you're on-it follows you.

✅ What You Can Do

• Use browsers like Brave or Firefox, along with privacy extensions such as uBlock Origin.
• Clear cookies regularly-but understand that some trackers don't rely on cookies alone.
• Use tools that don't just block trackers, but help you understand what they do.

Want to know how we uncovered all this? Read part 2: What Agentic Browsers See That Others Miss to explore the AI-powered tools we used.

Or explore how your organisation can learn to detect hidden tracking using our AI literacy & browser coaching programmes.