IGF 2022: ADC debates in session on data integration and human rights

As part of the IGF Annual meeting 2022, ADC project leader Eduardo Ferreyra participated in the session Perils and opportunities of data integration for security on November 30, where he shared the organization’s views and observations that should be considered when approaching the issue with a human rights perspective.

The event was held by TEDIC and Data Privacy Brazil in the virtual mode under the premise that although the introduction of digital technologies for security and migration management began more than a decade ago, the COVID-19 pandemic has sped it up, without receiving enough attention from policymakers and even international cooperation on its full effects.

One of the central problems lies in the very beginning of the process: the acquisition of the technology itself. “The procedure by which public authorities in Argentina and Latin America purchase surveillance systems is opaque,” Ferreyra stressed. “Governments make procurements without conducting prior public discussions or establishing independent oversight mechanisms,” he added. 

On the other hand, our rep shared the findings and analysis of ADC’s Con Mi Cara No (Not With My Face) campaign: “Our research shows that facial recognition for public security is the most widely used surveillance technology in Argentina. These developments were made with no privacy impact assessments to justify their necessity or proportionality.”

The panel was moderated by Eduardo Carillo (TEDIC) and also heard presentations by Helena Secaf (Data Privacy Brazil), Juan de Brigard (Karisma Foundation), Dorothy Mukasa (Unwanted Witness), Illia Siatitsa (Privacy International) and Miguel Candia Ibarra (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay).

The 17th Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is being held in the hybrid mode under the overarching theme Resilient Internet for a Common and Sustainable Future in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), from November 28 to December 2, 2022.