The bloc’s proposal includes restrictions on the use of facial recognition for mass surveillance. Text will still be debated by parliamentarians.
The European Union unveiled on Wednesday (21) a set of proposals to regulate the use of artificial intelligence technologies in the bloc.
The committee that drafted the text indicated that the technology could not be used in “high risk” scenarios, such as using facial recognition for mass surveillance.
The authorities want to impose rules for the use of automated systems that select people for job openings, in schools and for loans.
The group also wants to completely ban the use of artificial intelligence in cases considered to be very risky, such as “social scoring” systems that judge people based on their behavior and physical traits.
“With these historic rules, the European Union is leading the development of new global standards to ensure that artificial intelligence can be trusted,” said Margrethe Vestager, European Commission vice president for the digital age, in a statement.
Vestager said the ban on using facial recognition to identify people in real time in a crowd is important because “there is no room for mass surveillance in our society”.
The document provides for some exceptions to this technology, such as searching for missing children, fugitives or preventing terrorist attacks.
Some lawmakers and digital law groups fear that this will create a loophole to justify the use of solutions in the future, according to the Associated Press news agency.
Failure to comply with the rules could result in fines of up to 30 thousand euros (R $ 200 thousand, at the current price) for individuals. For companies, sanctions could reach up to 6% of global annual revenue.
The proposals still need to be debated by parliamentarians of the European Union in a process that can take years.
Facial recognition is target and criticism
The use of facial recognition systems in public security is subject to criticism from experts, for concerns about privacy and the accuracy of this type of technology.
