The German government is pushing through Parliament a “security package” that would significantly expand biometric surveillance, despite the country’s strong stance on privacy and data protection. 

Not only do the proposed measures contradict the coalition government’s own agreement but they contravene the European AI Act and the German Constitution.

Germany is a leader in privacy and data protection, with many Germans being particularly sensitive to the processing of their personal data – owing to the country’s totalitarian history and the role of surveillance in both Nazi Germany and East Germany.

The proposed “security package” the German government is trying to push through Parliament at record speed was introduced in response to a knife-stabbing incident in Solingen.  The proposed measures include allowing law enforcement authorities to identify suspects by comparing their biometric data (audio, video and image data) to all publicly available internet data, which could lead to the creation of nuanced profiles of people’s everyday activities.

This proposal contradicts the government’s own coalition agreement, which commits to preventing biometric surveillance in Germany, and also contravenes the German Constitution and the recently adopted European AI Act, which bans the use of artificial intelligence (“AI”) systems that create or expand facial recognition databases.

The proposal would grant sweeping new powers to law enforcement authorities and the Federal Office for Migration and Asylum, allowing them to identify asylum seekers without IDs by comparing their biometric data to “internet data,” despite the well-documented racial biases in facial recognition software.

The draft law does not include any meaningful measures to protect against discriminatory outcomes, nor does it acknowledge the limitations of facial recognition.

The security package also includes the introduction of AI-enabled mining of any data held by law enforcement authorities, which could be used for predictive policing and threatens fundamental rights like the right to privacy.  Data held by law enforcement authorities include data from anyone who ever filed a complaint, served as a witness or ended up in a police database for being a victim of a crime

The government’s plans have been met with opposition from experts at a parliamentary hearing, civil society groups and thousands of protesters in Berlin, who argue that the proposals undermine fundamental rights, violate European law and walk back the coalition parties’ own promises.

The security package also seeks to exploit a provision of the Digital Services Act (“DSA”), which regulates online platforms in the European Union.  Due to its unclear definition, the provision risks undermining the freedom of expression online as providers might be pressured to share more rather than less data to avoid DSA fines.

The German government is also suggesting that the DSA be updated by expanding it to include specific criminal offences for which companies must share user data, which could undermine the freedom of expression online.

The proposal to update the DSA so shortly after its adoption is unrealistic but it shows that protecting fundamental rights online is not a priority for the German government.

The above is a précis of the article ‘Germany Rushes to Expand Biometric Surveillance’ published by the Electronic Frontier Foundation.  You can read the full article HERE.