“Europe must not give up its ‘will to protect fundamental values,’” she argued, “because this approach makes [the EU] one of the most attractive places to live.”
With these words, Ursula von der Leyen set the course for her action and, in a way, closed the debate: “We should let the Chinese be Chinese, we are certainly not good at that. Therefore, it is better for us to stay true to our convictions.”
On Wednesday, the European Commission presented its strategy for Artificial Intelligence (AI), a battle in which it wants to engage with an ethical approach that it intends to use as its marker and asset: “[…] We encourage a responsible, human-centered approach to AI,” insisted the President, Ursula von der Leyen.
The automatic identification enabled by facial recognition technology is illegal under the European data protection regime, noted the Commission Vice-President in charge of digital affairs, Margrethe Vestager.
“As things stand, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)* would indicate not to use [facial recognition] because consent [of the individuals concerned] cannot be obtained,” stated Margrethe Vestager.
However, Margrethe Vestager added that there are certain exceptions to this rule, particularly when public safety is at stake. In such cases, the use of facial recognition technologies should be allowed for automatic identification of individuals to be legal, as outlined in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
An opinion shared by CNIL, the French data regulation authority.
