AI Act could inform biometrics standards for European identity regulation

The European Union’s AI Act may not achieve the “Brussels effect” – incentivizing non-EU countries to accept changes in AI products and regulations. The legislation could, however, influence future standards and safeguards for biometric and identification tools within the bloc itself, including for initiatives such as the EU Digital Identity (EUDI) Wallet.

This means that the question of whether the AI Act protects fundamental rights is even more important, according to a new research paper analyzing the legislation’s internal influence within the EU.

“The AI Act is expected to establish a protective standard for biometrics and identification tools, reflecting the EU’s commitment to proportionally balancing innovation with regulation, exemplified in the Digital Identity Wallet,” the paper notes. “However, the EU appears to overlook the risks related to enforcing the rule.”

The paper titled From Global Standards to Local Safeguards: The AI Act, Biometrics, and Fundamental Rights also looks into how AI Act principles should guide other projects using biometric data and analyzes the European standards for regulating biometric identification systems. Authored by Federica Paolucci, Ph.D. Candidate at the Bocconi University, in Milan the paper is forthcoming in Springer by the end of 2024.

Although the AI rulebook seeks to establish a product safety standard, it leaves balancing security and rights protections to EU member states, according to the researcher.  This is why it is important to monitor how individual states will enact the legislation.

One particular issue is the use of real-time and retrospective facial recognition. Although the AI Act bans biometric surveillance in public spaces, it leaves exceptions for law enforcement in specific circumstances.

“While acknowledging the AI Act’s achievements, such as the inclusion of the Fundamental Rights Impact Assessment framework and procedural rights exercise, concerns persist regarding inconsistencies in biometric surveillance and potential inefficiencies in fundamental rights protection mechanisms,” the paper notes.

Article Topics

AI Act  |  biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  EU  |  facial recognition  |  legislation  |  standards