Renaissance Numérique advocates for the creation a strong EU-level standardisation system for facial recognition technologies
25 June 2020
In its White Paper on artificial intelligence (AI) published on 19 February 2020, the European Commission calls for the organisation of an EU-wide debate on “the gathering and use of biometric data for remote identification purposes”.
The recent multiplication of experimentations and use cases of facial recognition technologies across Europe and in the world does indeed question the framework within which these devices – which are particularly intrusive and could potentially harm our civil liberties – develop.
In a report published on Friday June 19, 2020, Renaissance Numérique advocates for the creation a strong EU-level standardisation system for facial recognition technologies. Two main issues are at stake: ensuring the protection of EU citizens’ fundamental rights and freedoms, and enhancing the EU’s digital sovereignty.
- Facial recognition technologies: probabilistic tools that process sensitive data.
- The legal framework surrounding facial recognition technologies in Europe is relatively comprehensive, but its application is fragmented and inefficient.
- Faced with the predominance of the United States and in order to guarantee its citizens’ fundamental rights and freedoms, the European Union needs a robust European standardization system for facial recognition technologies.
Valérie Fernandez, professor at Télécom Paris and holder of the Responsible Digital Identity Chair, is co-author of the report.