On November 24 (local time), the German Social Democratic Party, the Green Party, and the Liberal Democratic Party, which decided to establish a coalition government, issued a statement banning monitoring and tracking using biometric authentication technology, such as face authentication, in public places in a joint statement (Mehr Fortschritt wagen – Bündnis für) Freiheit, Gerechtigkeit und Nachhaltigkeit. Koalitionsvertrag). Because the pledge includes a call to Europe as a whole, EU human rights advocacy group EDRi (European Digital Rights) and others are issuing statements welcoming the new regime and expressing support for the elimination of surveillance technology that threatens to lead to discrimination.
In this statement, it supported the European AI regulatory legislation and called for a risk-based approach to protect digital citizenship, particularly the right to non-discrimination, set rules on accountability and avoid pre-regulations that stifle innovation. It states that the use of AI as well as the national rating system by AI should be excluded by the entire European law.
In contrast, the EDRi-led Reclaim Your Face campaign is calling for the German government to ban biometric technologies, including face authentication, across Europe on November 25. This is consistent with the campaign requirements promoted by EDRi.
According to the campaign that has been actively putting pressure on officials since its launch in 2020, the joint statement says that the use of biometric information for surveillance or surveillance using video is comprehensively banned. Since the same response is required not only in Germany but also in EU countries, it is expected that restrictions on the use of biometric technology in public places will spread throughout Europe.
An official who also joined the campaign from a German-based hacker group said the campaign’s achievements were not enough, although the German government statement contained a request for a Europe without biometric surveillance.
In addition, an official from the campaign member group said that this is a huge milestone in the goal of protecting human rights and freedom, and based on strong opposition to face and body data, governments around the world treat all Salam as criminals, infringe on privacy on a large scale, or amplify discrimination. He said he expected to refuse to meet. Related information can be found here.