French parliament says oui to AI surveillance for 2024 Paris Olympics
- Reference: 1679639053
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/03/24/al_surveillance_french/
- Source link:
Endorsed by French senators in January, the [1]proposed law for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games cleared a committee vote earlier this month. On Thursday, the French National Assembly adopted Article 7 of the pending bill, which authorizes automated analysis of surveillance video from fixed and drone cameras.
Specifically, it allows such surveillance "On an experimental basis and until June 30, 2025, for the sole purpose of ensuring the security of sporting, recreational or cultural events which, by their scale or their circumstances, are particularly exposed to the risk of acts of terrorism or serious threats to the safety of persons, the images collected by means of video protection systems … and cameras installed on aircraft … in the places hosting these events and in their surroundings, as well as in vehicles and public transport rights-of-way." It probably sounds more romantic in French.
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Opponents of the bill are worried this is putting the foot in the door for future surveillance.
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The European Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ECNL), European Digital Rights (EDRi), La Quadrature du Net, Amnesty International France and the other 34 rights groups opposing the AI surveillance plan disputed the bill in an [5]open letter [PDF].
The EU's General Data Protection Regulation, the rights groups say, defines biometric data as any physical, physiological or behavioral characteristics that can be used to identify a person.
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"If the purpose of algorithm-driven cameras is to detect specific suspicious events in public spaces, they will necessarily capture and analyze physiological features and behaviors of individuals present in these spaces, such as their body positions, gait, movements, gestures, or appearance," the open letter reads.
"Isolating individuals from the background, without which it would be impossible to achieve the aim of the system, will amount to 'unique identification.'"
The ENCL and its allies argue that France would become the first member of the EU to explicitly legalize automated surveillance – which violates international human rights law by ignoring balancing tests of necessity and proportionality.
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Though the surveillance plan is scheduled to expire, the rights groups contend that technology, once implemented, tends to stick around. They cite the longevity of security measures enacted for the 2012 Olympics in London and the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
[8]French lawmakers say oui to Olympic video surveillance, but non for faces
[9]World Cup apps pose a data security and privacy nightmare
[10]EU countries want to pool photos in massive facial recog database
[11]Ukraine uses Clearview AI facial-recognition technology
Mher Hakobyan, Amnesty International's advocacy advisor on AI regulation, issued [12]a statement , arguing "While France promotes itself as a champion of human rights globally, its decision to legalize AI-powered mass surveillance during the Olympics will lead to an all-out assault on the rights to privacy, protest, and freedom of assembly and expression."
Hakobyan added that surveillance technology tends to disproportionately target marginalized groups.
Amnesty International is part of a related group of advocacy groups, led by the European Digital Rights Network (EDRi), that are trying to convince the EU to impose stronger restrictions on algorithmic (AI) decision-making. ®
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[1] https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/16/dossiers/DLR5L16N46918
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZB2C18M4xQ5m4rPDOFI@CQAAAAQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZB2C18M4xQ5m4rPDOFI@CQAAAAQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZB2C18M4xQ5m4rPDOFI@CQAAAAQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://ecnl.org/sites/default/files/2023-03/Civil%20society%20public%20letter%20on%20Art.%207%20of%20the%20French%20Olympics%20law%20-%20Final_EN_0.pdf
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZB2C18M4xQ5m4rPDOFI@CQAAAAQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_security/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZB2C18M4xQ5m4rPDOFI@CQAAAAQ&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/01/french_senate_video_surveillance/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2022/11/11/world_cup_security/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2022/04/11/in_brief_ai/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2022/03/14/ukraine-clearview-facial-recognition-war/
[12] https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2023/03/france-allowing-mass-surveillance-at-olympics-undermines-eu-efforts-to-regulate-ai/
[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Relax citizen
As ever, it'll all depend on exactly what they do with it. If it's used lazily, as a substitute for actual "thinking", there will definitely be problems. If it's used intelligently, well, maybe there'll be some small benefit (at most).
As always, it's how well do these things get set up. There's a fundamental contradiction in the requirements for things like this. First, it mustn't over react when it shouldn't. Second, it must react well enough when it should. There is no happy middle ground, because no one knows where that is. This sort of contradiction has been the bane of all such systems for a long time (including biometric systems, which are also generally making decisions with fuzzily ambiguous data). It takes human intervention to resolve, and if that's biased (ie. "I believe this snake oil"), then you've got judicial enquiries looming on the horizon...
Grand frère t'aime.
moi non plus.
The Olympics have always been a political joke and a waste of time
Nobody I know here in the US - work or friends - watch any of it.
Looking at the list of cities, the last time I watched was 1994.
Re: The Olympics have always been a political joke and a waste of time
Quite often its politicians that want it, and the IOC is dead keen on countries spending vast sums in self-engrandisement projects to boost their TV revenue. It's not an ideal venue for "sports" to actually occur. Some events, one wonders if one is simply looking at the results of various government chemistry labs more than anything else.
Very few countries have got the Olympics "right". Sydney, Australia did - made a profit. London 2012 is probably at least cash-neutral, with fairly well controlled costs. Japan 2020 could have been OK, but got ruined by Covid (they built whole new motorways and moved fish markets in Tokyo to cope with the traffic that never came...). Most other places it's been a big waste of public expenditure.
Re: The Olympics have always been a political joke and a waste of time
Apparently, the Sydney games are considered a success because the cost overrun was "only" 90% of the budget, and taxpayers paid for the bill.
There's cause for legitimate worry, but the headlines is false: facial recognition is explicitly forbidden, as ElReg itself reported a couple of months ago:
https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/01/french_senate_video_surveillance/
lol at the subtitle
And kudos to El Reg for the lack of typos !
Actually, this is a bit of a political knee jerk reaction at:
1- the Nice terrorist attack where so many were killed or gravely wounded, in the only town in France with so many security cameras. It turned out the droids looking at those never noticed a lorry patrolling in a no-lorry zone, during the previous days. A very clear surveillance failure.
2- the inept ministry of interior in France, Darmanin, as clearly shown in the disaster of the 2022 final of the Europe cup. I wouldn't trust this bozo for any security during any people gathering in Paris.
The issue is Darmanin is inept but Macron doesn't have anything better, so he'll have to do. With some technology help, in order, we all hope, to avoid a disaster !
Not saying it is good, but that's all what Macron can afford. Yes, the king is naked, in the security area as well ...
Relax citizen
It’s for your own good.
Grand frère t'aime.