Author Archives: igakozlowska

Facial Recognition Bans and Moratoriums

To what extent should we limit facial recognition technologies? In my February blog post titled, “Facial Recognition in 2020”, I asked what the “man in the street” thinks about facial recognition ending with, “Maybe in 2020 we’ll find out.” Well, I think we have. After the police killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breaonna Taylor, and GeorgeContinue reading “Facial Recognition Bans and Moratoriums”

Schrems II

The long-anticipated Schrems II decision is here! But as of yet it’s hard to tell whether it’s a game changer. The European Court of Justice judgement invalidated the Privacy Shield program that most companies used to legally transfer personal data from the European Union to the United States. However, it ruled that Standard Contractual ClausesContinue reading “Schrems II”

Algorithmic Unfairness and Racial Injustice in America’s Criminal Legal System

In America, we are currently living through a moment of heightened awareness of racialized police brutality and, in response,  the reawakening of a racial justice movement. In this same period, we’ve seen an incredible expansion in the use of data analytics and AI technologies in almost all industries, including the criminal legal system. No oneContinue reading “Algorithmic Unfairness and Racial Injustice in America’s Criminal Legal System”

Translating Algorithms

As a sociologist, and now a privacy practitioner, I am interested in the ethical issues we face in using new technologies like AI and machine learning. They are of course many ranging from privacy and fairness to accountability and transparency. But how does a social scientist without a computer science background engage in these topicsContinue reading “Translating Algorithms”

COVID19, Technology, and Social Inequality

The COVID19 pandemic is an unprecedented global public health challenge. It’s additionally troubling that its impact and our response to it throws into sharp relief many social inequalities in areas like healthcare, education, and employment that have existed long before the pandemic. Technology, as it’s used in each of these sectors, has historically co-created theseContinue reading “COVID19, Technology, and Social Inequality”

Europe’s Data Strategy

The European Commission’s Communication from February of this year describes Europe’s “strategy for data”. As a leader in data protection, it is interesting to see the EU strategize on how to make data more available in order to stimulate the European single market. Can the EU be just as successful in making data available toContinue reading “Europe’s Data Strategy”

Online Content Moderation and the German Network Enforcement Act

The spread of the COVID19 global pandemic has recently brought to the fore a tech policy issue that has long been causing heated debate, namely online misinformation. In recent weeks, tech companies have been working together to figure out how to prevent the spread of COVID19 misinformation as the world tackles the pandemic, with socialContinue reading “Online Content Moderation and the German Network Enforcement Act”

Washington’s Landmark Facial Recognition Law

pixabay.com Just toward the end of the legislative session, Washington state managed to pass a facial recognition bill, the first of its kind in the United States. Welcomed by some and criticized by others, the act constitutes a compromise between privacy and civil liberties advocacy groups, like the ACLU which favor moratoriums, and the statusContinue reading “Washington’s Landmark Facial Recognition Law”

AI Ethics

The conversation about responsible AI is in full swing among industry, governments, international organizations, and academic institutions. Last year in particular saw a flurry of pronouncements about ethical AI with the OECD issuing AI principles, the G20 adopting those same principles, and in 2018 the European Commission set up an independent High-Level Expert Group onContinue reading “AI Ethics”