This week, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) announced plans to increase its supervision of AI and biometric technologies to ensure the responsible use of personal information.
The strategy launched on June 5 to support AI innovators in scaling emerging technologies while also protecting public information, John Edwards, UK Information Commissioner, explained:
Our personal information powers the economy, bringing new opportunities for organisations to innovate with AI and biometric technologies. But to confidently engage with AI-powered products and services, people need to trust their personal information is in safe hands.
“It is our job as the regulator to scrutinise emerging technologies – agentic AI, for example – so we can make sure effective protections are in place, and personal information is used in ways that drive innovation and earn people’s trust,” Edwards remarked.
Regulating AI for Everyday Life
The ICO plans to refine its supervision towards emerging AI and biometrics use cases for everyday work and life.
The Lord Clement-Jones CBE, APPG AI Co-Chair, noted:
The AI revolution must be founded on trust. Privacy, transparency, and accountability are not impediments to innovation; they constitute its foundation. AI is advancing rapidly, transitioning from generative models to autonomous systems. However, increased speed introduces complexity. Complexity entails risk. We must guarantee that innovation does not compromise public trust, individual rights, or democratic principles.
ICO will review automated decision-making systems that the recruitment industry leverages, starting with early adopters in central government departments such as the Department for Work and Pensions. ICO will also conduct audits on police forces’ lawful usage of facial recognition technology.
Furthermore, the ICO will strive to establish clear expectations for safeguarding individuals’ personal information when it is used to train generative AI foundation models. Additionally, it will create a statutory code of practice for organisations developing or deploying AI responsibly.
Edwards also added:
The same data protection principles apply now as they always have – trust matters and it can only be built by organisations using people’s personal information responsibly. Public trust is not threatened by new technologies themselves, but by reckless applications of these technologies outside of the necessary guardrails. We are here, as we were 40 years ago, to make compliance easier and ensure those guardrails are in place.
In addition, Dawn Butler MP, APPG AI Vice Chair, explained that AI is “more than just a technology change; it is a change in society.”
“It will increasingly change how we get health care, attend school, travel, and even experience democracy,” Butler remarked, stating that “AI must work for everyone, not just a few people.”
“That involves putting fairness, openness, and inclusion into the underpinnings,” Butler concluded.
