Ot van Daalen
Lawyer, Researcher, and Journalist
Ot van Daalen is a leading expert at the intersection of cybersecurity, privacy, digital rights, and societal resilience. He works as a lawyer, academic researcher, deputy judge, and journalist. This versatility makes him one of the most insightful and nuanced voices on the digital society in the Netherlands. As a lawyer, he helps organizations operate responsibly and securely in a world where cyber threats, data misuse, and AI technologies are becoming increasingly sophisticated. He is also affiliated with the Institute for Information Law at the University of Amsterdam, where he researches the legal and societal impact of digital technology. In his role as a deputy judge at the District Court of The Hague, he applies this expertise directly in practice. Van Daalen became nationally known through the reestablishment of Bits of Freedom, the Netherlands’ leading digital civil rights organization. Under his leadership, the organization grew into an influential watchdog for privacy and internet freedom.