#publicsector (25 results)

The Seamless Surveillance Machine: Europe’s Biometric Border Vision

The EU aims to develop and deploy so-called “biometrics on the move” technologies in order to turn its borders into engines of seamless mass discrimination. Behind the promise of rendering border crossings instantaneous and border checks invisible, lies a vision rooted in opacity and unproven technological solutions. This could, in practice, usher in a regime of invisible but pervasive mass surveillance of people on the move and travelers alike.

The EU’s empty promises on sustainable border AI

EU-funded projects claim to make automated border surveillance environmentally sustainable, but the Commission admitted to AlgorithmWatch that it lacks rigorous definitions, standards and methods to translate these claims into measurable outcomes. As a result, a more ubiquitous “Green” border AI will most likely harm — rather than help — the planet.

Frontex is building an ‘AI chatbot app’ to encourage repatriations

The chatbot shall provide answers, including legal advice, in many different languages although it was only fed information in English, new documents show.

Large language models as attributes of statehood

As governments champion AI, the development and control of large language models are becoming matters of state. European countries are investing heavily in language resources, with geopolitics casting a large shadow over this endeavor.

AI avatars have been in politics for a decade, but Diella is different

Albania’s new “Minister for AI” is an LLM-powered avatar. AI has been touted since at least 2017 to replace politicians, but the Albanian software, which shall be in charge of public procurement, opens the gates to corruption on a new scale.

Automation on the Move

Border Surveillance on the Move to Enforce Restrictive Measures

In two recent Horizon Europe research projects, adaptable and mobile AI-based surveillance assemblages are developed to secure both the external and internal borders of the European Union. AlgorithmWatch looked into project material that revealed a lopsided fixation on defense.

Automation on the Move

The EU Spends Big on Border Tech — But Has No Idea What It Gets

The European Commission claims not to monitor if research findings of EU-funded projects are applied to the market after they have ended, AlgorithmWatch found. As no EU institution seems to be responsible for checking on border security investments, it is hard to tell if the millions spent actually lead to technological innovation.

Spanish National Police Halts Veripol, Its Flagship AI To Detect False Reports

The Ministry of Interior stated that it dismissed the system on the grounds that it had been proved being of no validity in judicial proceedings.

Automation on the Move

Systems based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automated decision-making (ADM) are increasingly being experimented with and used on migrants, refugees, and travelers. Too often, this is done without adequate democratic discussion or oversight. In addition, their use lacks transparency and justification to those who are subjected to these systems, as a growing body of literature and evidence shows. This needs to change.

Automation on the Move

The Automation of Fortress Europe: Behind the Black Curtain

The European Union poured 5 million euros into the development of a border surveillance system called NESTOR. When we tried to look into it, we were presented hundreds of redacted, blacked out pages.

Automation on the Move

Blurred Lines: When Civilian Research Projects Become of Military Interest

The EU does not fund border security research projects that mainly target military applications. Or do they? AlgorithmWatch found that in the realm of border security, civilian applications appeal enormously to the military.

Automation on the Move

Automating EU Borders, Broken Checks and Balances

For over a year, we have been looking into EU-funded border security research projects to assess their methodological approaches and ethical implications. We failed.

Automation on the Move

EMERALD – The One That Fell from Grace

Only one proposed border security research project did not meet the EU’s ethical requirements and was rejected, AlgorithmWatch found. What was so unique about this surveillance system?

“All Rise For the Honorable AI”: Algorithmic Management in Polish Electronic Courts

Polish courts are using algorithms to support their decision-making process, e.g. for evaluating cases or issuing resolutions. Some see AI as a game changer, but the lack of a critical assessment and transparency as well as the impact on judges’ independence and fairness are reasons for concern.

Campaign: ADM and People on the Move

Borders without AI

29,000 people have died in the Mediterranean over the past ten years while trying to reach the EU. You would think that the EU wanted this tragedy to stop and scientists across Europe were working feverishly on making this happen with the latest technology. The opposite is the case: With the help of so-called Artificial Intelligence, the walls are being raised, financed with taxpayers' money.

Campaign: ADM and People on the Move

The Automated Fortress Europe: No Place for Human Rights

29,000 people have died in the Mediterranean over the past ten years while trying to reach the EU. You would think that the EU wanted this tragedy to stop and scientists across Europe were working feverishly on making this happen with the latest technology. The opposite is the case: With the help of so-called Artificial Intelligence, digital border walls are being raised, financed with taxpayers' money.

Explainer: ADM in the public sector

The algorithmic administration

Automating administration processes promises efficiency. Yet the procedures often put vulnerable people at a disadvantage, as shown by a number of examples throughout Europe. We’ll explain why using automation systems in the domain of public administration can be especially problematic and how risks may be detected at an early stage.

Italy Introduces Entirely Automated Public Tenders

The neofascist government led by Brothers of Italy passed a law that encourages public institutions to entirely automate procurements, from the definition of needs to the selection of winning bids. The consequences are uncertain as such systems have yet to be implemented, but small communities will most definitely lose power and opacity will reign.

Stance

If the UN wants to help humanity, it should not fall for AI hype

How should the international governance of AI look like? This is the thorny question the UN Secretary General’s AI Advisory Body tries to address in its first interim report. We have highlighted some concerning aspects of the report in a recent consultation process.

Spanish Inmates Not to Be Automatically Monitored in Fear of AI Act

Spanish region Catalonia’s government approved the use of an Artificial Intelligence-based software to monitor inmates and interpret their behavior. Partially funded by the European Union, the system was to be implemented at the Mas d'Enric prison near Tarragona, a city south of Barcelona, and extended to other regional prisons. Ultimately, it wasn't.

Austria’s Social Security Invests Over €50m in AI – Just for Bookkeeping?

The company that manages the technical infrastructure of Austria’s health insurance system passed a massive tender for AI services. The plan is shrouded in secrecy, even though the company’s track record urges caution.

Battle in Strasbourg: Civil society fights for safeguards against AI harms

With negotiations on a Convention on Artificial Intelligence (AI) within the Council of Europe entering a crucial stage, a joint statement by AlgorithmWatch and ten other civil society organizations reminds negotiating states of their mandate : to protect human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. To adhere to this mandate and to counter both narrow state interest and companies’ lobbying, the voice of civil society must be listened to.

The algorithm that blew up Italy’s school system 

An algorithm was supposed to save time by allocating teachers on short-term contracts to schools automatically. Failures in the code and in the design severely disrupted teachers’ lives.

Joint statement: The EU AI Act must protect people on the move

In its current form, the AI Act does not adequately address and prevent harms stemming from the use of AI in the migration context. Today, AlgorithmWatch together with 191 organizations and individuals are sending a decisive signal to EU decision-makers: ensure the protection of human rights of people on the move!

Civil society responds to the Council of Europe Treaty on AI

Together with other observer civil society organizations in the Committee on AI in the Council of Europe, AlgorithmWatch stresses the importance of that legal framework on AI based on human rights, democracy, and the rule of law that is currently being elaborated in Strasbourg. We urge the EU not to delay this process in light of the negotiations on its own AI Act currently ongoing in Brussels. The two frameworks have a different purpose and should complement rather than copy-paste each other.