Revisiting the legal regulation of digital identity in the light of global implementation and local difference

This thesis aims to address a vital gap that has emerged in the digital identity regulatory discourse: how can the legal regulation of digital identity mirror the global nature of digital identity and be compatible with national local difference? Digital identity, or the digital representation of an individual, is a complex concept, which manifests in myriad forms (e.g. authenticators, claims, data or information, identifiers, presence, relationship representations and reputation) and natures. As such, it engages a gamut of legal domains ranging from criminal law, constitutional law, human rights law, law of identity schemes, contract law, intellectual property law, tort law and data protection law. Digital identity is global and local in its nature, influence and effects. Yet, the digital identity regulatory discourse has primarily developed in and focussed on the digitally advanced West, leaving out countries like India which are developing strong digital presences, with their own digital identity perceptions and needs. This situation is adverse to the sustained future of digital identity. Thus, the contribution of this thesis lies in filling this gap and preparing the ground for a dialogue between different countries with different national agendas through building international and local awareness of how similarities and differences operate in respect of digital identity, its regulation and providing a modest solution to help preserve the global and local dimensions of digital identity and its regulation. To this end, the thesis carried out comparative legal research on the legal regulation of digital identity using the UK and India as base jurisdictions. The original hypothesis was that that immense differences in the legal regulation of digital identity between the comparator countries would emerge. Yet, though differences were evident, considerable degrees of similarity also emerged, not just on the superficial level of mere identity of rules, but also in legal practice, in large part attributable to India’s penchant for legal transplants. While the transplantation of Western law did not result in a full-scale rejection of the transplanted laws in relation to digital identity in India, there are indications of anomalies caused by the imposition of Western cultural norms through law on an Indian society ill prepared for it. Thus there has resulted a tension between the local and the global, the indigenous and the externally imposed. The challenge is thus to resolve this, taking into account, on the one hand the need to maintain the global nature and relevance of digital identity and the other, the need to accommodate and be responsive to local differences. The thesis proposes a tentative solution called the tri-elemental framework (TeF) which draws from the Indian philosophical and legal concept of dharma (and its elements of Sad Achara, Vyavahara and Prayaschitta) and learns from the most universally relevant digital identity proposal, De Hert’s right to identity. The solution provides one way in which the law regulating digital identity, whatever its nature, can be made sense of and acquire cultural meaning appropriate to local contexts

Ethics of Artificial Intelligence

This open access collection of AI ethics case studies is the first book to present real-life case studies combined with commentaries and strategies for overcoming ethical challenges. Case studies are one of the best ways to learn about ethical dilemmas and to achieve insights into various complexities and stakeholder perspectives. Given the omnipresence of AI ethics in academic, policy and media debates, the book will be suitable for a wide range of audiences, from scholars of different disciplines (e.g. AI science, ethics, politics, philosophy, economics) to policy-makers, lobbying NGOs, teachers and the educated public

EU Privacy seals project: Inventory and analysis of privacy certification schemes

The objective of this report is to comprehensively inventory and analyse privacy and related certification schemes in the European Union and, where relevant, at the international level. The report will provide insights into the importance of privacy seal schemes and present information on the operational aspects of these schemes. The report will also help understand the privacy and data protection elements of the analysed schemes and provide and initial analysis of their shortcomings. The report specifically aims to understand whether (if at all) the analysed schemes address the requirements proposed under the GDPR. It will highlight the main convergences and differences between the schemes, who benefits from such schemes and what the impact of such schemes is.JRC.G.7-Digital Citizen Securit

The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence: An Introduction

This chapter introduces the themes covered by the book. It provides an overview of the concept of artificial intelligence (AI) and some of the technologies that have contributed to the current high level of visibility of AI. It explains why using case studies is a suitable approach to engage a broader audience with an interest in AI ethics. The chapter provides a brief overview of the structure and logic of the book by indicating the content of the cases covered in each section. It concludes by identifying the concept of ethics used in this book and how it is located in the broader discussion of ethics, human rights and regulation of AI

AI for Good and the SDGs

In 2015, 193 nations came together to agree Agenda 2030: 17 goals ranging from the elimination of poverty to the building of partnerships to achieve those goals. The spirit of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is to leave no one behind. Artificial intelligence (AI) has a great potential to assist in reaching the SDGs. For instance, using algorithms on new and vast agricultural data sets can improve the efficiency of agriculture practices and thereby contribute to SDG 1, “Zero hunger”. However, the high energy consumption, computational resources and levels of expertise required for AI can exacerbate existing inequalities. At the same time, potentially useful AI applications such as seasonal climate forecasting have led to the accelerated laying off of workers in Peru and credit denial to poor farmers in Zimbabwe and Brazil. If AI for Good is to be truly realised, AI’s potential to worsen inequality, to overexploit resources, to be undertaken through “helicopter research” and to focus on SDG issues relevant mainly to high-income countries must be overcome, ideally in close collaboration and engagement with potential beneficiaries in resource-limited settings

Right to Life, Liberty and Security of Persons

Artificial intelligence (AI) can support individuals’ enjoyment of life, liberty and security, but it can also have adverse effects on them in a variety of ways. This chapter covers three cases affecting human life, liberty and security: one in transportation (self-driving cars), one in the home (smart security systems) and one in healthcare services (adversarial attacks). The chapter discusses ethical questions and three potential solutions to address AI human rights issues related to life, liberty and security of persons: defining and strengthening liability regimes, implementing quality management systems and adversarial robustness. AI developers, deployers and users must respect the sanctity of human life and embed, value and respect this principle in the design, development and use of their products and/or services. Critically, AI systems should not be programmed to kill or injure humans

Manipulation

The concern that artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to manipulate individuals, with undesirable consequences for the manipulated individual as well as society as a whole, plays a key role in the debate on the ethics of AI. This chapter uses the case of the political manipulation of voters and that of the manipulation of vulnerable consumers as studies to explore how AI can contribute to and facilitate manipulation and how such manipulation can be evaluated from an ethical perspective. The chapter presents some proposed ways of dealing with the ethics of manipulation with reference to data protection, privacy and transparency in the of use of data. Manipulation is thus an ethical issue of AI that is closely related to other issues discussed in this book

The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence: A Conclusion

The concluding chapter highlights broader lessons that can be learned from the artificial intelligence (AI) cases discussed in the book. It underlines the fact that, in many cases, it is not so much the technology itself that is the root cause of ethical concerns but the way it is applied in practice and its reliability. In addition, many of the cases do not differ radically from ethics cases related to other novel technologies, even though the use of AI can exacerbate existing concerns. Ethical issues can rarely be resolved to everybody’s full satisfaction, not least because they often involve the balancing of competing goods. What is essential is space for human reflection and decision-making within the use of AI. Questions about what we can and should do, why we should act in particular ways and how we evaluate the ethical quality of our actions and their outcomes are part of what it means to be human. Even though Immanuel Kant believed that a good will is the only thing in the world that is ethical per se, a good will alone does not suffice where complex consequences may not be obvious. The complex nature of AI systems and their interaction with their human, social and natural environment require constant vigilance and human input

Dignity

Dignity is a very prominent concept in human rights instruments, in particular constitutions. It is also a concept that has many critics, including those who argue that it is useless in ethical debates. How useful or not dignity can be in artificial intelligence (AI) ethics discussions is the question of this chapter. Is it a conversation stopper, or can it help explain or even resolve some of the ethical dilemmas related to AI? The three cases in this chapter deal with groundless dismissal by an automated system, sex robots and care robots. The conclusion argues that it makes perfect sense for human rights proponents to treat dignity as a prime value, which takes precedence over others in the case of extreme dignity violations such as torture, human trafficking, slavery and reproductive manipulation. However, in AI ethics debates, it is better seen as an equal among equals, so that the full spectrum of potential benefits and harms are considered for AI technologies using all relevant ethical values