APDCAT warns of privacy risks to facial recognition artificial intelligence systems

The Catalan Data Protection Authority (APDCAT) is taking part in the Four Years From Now (4YFN) event from 28 June to 1 July, as part of the Mobile World Congress, in order to bring the sector closer to entrepreneurship and technology startups the importance of incorporating privacy protection from the design of applications and systems. The aim is to take advantage of this international event, expected to attract 30,000 – 50,000 attendees this year from 198 countries, to raise awareness among emerging companies that technological development must necessarily be linked to the incorporation of privacy protection.

Workshop on the risks of facial recognition systems

Therefore, on Wednesday 30 June, at 11 am, the APDCAT is organizing the debate ‘Artificial intelligence applied to facial recognition. Key privacy risks’, in the 4YFN Workshop room (Hall 2, 2B50). The aim is to discuss the possible risks to the protection of personal data and privacy in the implementation of data systems. 'Artificial facial recognition intelligence. The director of the APDCAT, M. Àngels Barbarà, will introduce the session, with the participation of Simona Levi, co-founder of Xnet, Carles Fernández, CTO at Herta Security, and Josep Domingo-Ferrer, director of the UNESCO Chair in Data Protection at the URV.

The session will serve to put on the table what are the threats of this technology for the protection of people's data, and what effects and implications it can have on society. Also to learn more about the mechanisms of operation of these systems and their reliability, as well as the regulation around this technology in Europe.

Small format workshops at the stand

On the other hand, the APDCAT will be present in the 4YFN with a stand of 20 m², the 2E23, located in Hall 2. This space will be the point of permanent exchange of information, to make known the principles that must govern the creation and development of any business idea from the point of view of privacy.

The space will host workshops in a reduced format, of about 6 people, following the recommendations of the organization derived from the exceptional situation of the COVID-19. In these 15-minute workshops, APDCAT data protection expert staff will share in a didactic way the key points to implement privacy from the design, one of the most relevant aspects introduced by the new General Data Protection Regulation.

In addition, visitors will be introduced to a pioneering tool for companies and institutions that process personal data, which the APDCAT has created to facilitate the execution of impact assessments relating to data protection, a procedure required in a series of treatments.

Finally, the APDCAT stand will have a large format screen to display multimedia content and promote the integration of privacy protection concepts in the emerging business sector.