The Dutch Data Protection Authority (Dutch DPA) has imposed a fine of €30.5m ($33.7m) on Clearview AI over illegal data collection for facial recognition.
“Clearview breaks the law, and this makes using the services of Clearview illegal. Dutch organizations that use Clearview may therefore expect hefty fines from the Dutch DPA,” said Dutch DPA chairman Aleid Wolfsen in a public statement.
Clearview’s Breach of GDPR
Clearview AI offers facial recognition services to intelligence and investigative services, powered by its internet scraping technology that allowed it to gather over 30 billion photos of people.
By doing this, the Dutch DPA considers that the company violates the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in several points:
- Its database has been illegally built and the unique biometric codes that the company allocates to each person infringe privacy laws
- The company does not provide sufficient transparency to people whose data appears in its database
- The company does not cooperate in requests for access to data appearing in its database
The Dutch DPA has ordered Clearview to stop those violations. If the company fails to do this, it will have to pay penalties for non-compliance in a maximum amount of €5.1m ($5.6m) on top of the fine.
Clearview Challenges GDPR Compliance
During the Dutch DPA’s investigation, Clearview AI responded that it has no presence in Europe and does not provide services within the EU, suggesting it should not have to comply with GDPR.
However, the Dutch DPA considers that the company must comply with EU laws because Clearview’s database includes European citizens.
“Facial recognition is a highly intrusive technology, that you cannot simply unleash on anyone in the world,” Wolfsen said.
“If there is a photo of you on the Internet – and doesn't that apply to all of us? – then you can end up in the database of Clearview and be tracked. This is not a doom scenario from a scary film. Nor is it something that could only be done in China.”
Clearview has not objected to this decision and cannot appeal against the fine.
Read more: Australia Calls Off Clearview AI Investigation Despite Lack of Compliance