Hungary called out for plan to use facial recognition for LGBTQ+ surveillance

Seventeen EU countries have called on Hungary to revise measures they believe contravenes fundamental values of the European Union including the its plan to use facial recognition technology (FRT) at Pride parades.

In March, Hungary’s parliament passed legislation that makes it illegal to organize or attend gatherings that breach the country’s “child protection” law in a move targeting LGBTQ+ people and the annual Pride march in Budapest.

“We are highly alarmed by these developments which run contrary to the fundamental values of human dignity, freedom, equality and respect for human rights,” the governments of the 17 countries said in a joint statement, as reported by Reuters.

The joint statement asked the European Commission to fully use its powers if Budapest does not change its approach, with the body able to take legal action against member states if there is evidence EU laws have been violated.

The statement was backed by Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.

Hungary’s Minister for European Union Affairs Janos Boka contested the view, saying: “There is no such thing in Hungary as a Pride ban.” However, the law passed in March prohibits the availability of information about non-heterosexual lifestyles to minors, which has the outcome of making attendance of Budapest Pride, which is scheduled for June, punishable with authorities able to fine participants.

The plan by authorities to use facial recognition technology at Pride parades to identify participants is also being investigated by the European Commission. The Commission will examine if Hungary’s plans are allowed under the EU’s AI Act.

A European Commission spokesperson told Euronews that any decision about the legality under the AI Act would depend on whether Hungarian Police use real-time or retrospective facial recognition software.

The Act prohibits identification via real-time facial recognition, although there are exceptions for serious crimes such as murder or terrorism. Italian MEP Brando Benifei, who helped create the AI Act and is co-chair of a group responsible for the law’s implementation, commented on the review.

“Hungary’s amended law appears to enable the use of real-time biometric surveillance at Pride events, which is an application clearly falling under the AI Act’s prohibitions,” he said in a statement (via Politico).

Article Topics

AI Act  |  biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  European Commission  |  facial recognition  |  Hungary  |  real-time biometrics