A former security guard involved in protecting far right MP Geert Wilders has gone on trial charged with leaking confidential information.

However, despite claims to the contrary, Faris K had spoken about his work to various women he knew but did not leak to criminal organisations, the public prosecution department said on Monday, on the first day of the trial.

K was observed and his phone and internet tapped for months before he was finally arrested in February, the public prosecutor said. At first it was assumed K was telling criminals about Wilders but this transpired not to be the case, the department said.

However, he did tell several women about his work in phone conversations and gave away secret operational  information, the court was told.

He not only spoke about where Wilders was living but told female friends about a visit by one of US president Barack Obama’s daughters to the Netherlands, in breach of his confidentiality agreement, the department said.

K’s lawyer Peter Plasman told the court that K used his job to try to impress women. ‘It is nothing more than that,’ he said. ‘In addition, it is open to question about whether this was confidential information. That is in dispute.’

K worked for a special security team which checked out locations where politicians like Wilders and members of the royal family would visit. He was not involved with Wilders’ personal security detail.