The UK information commissioner is investigating claims that the use of algorithms by the Home Office to make recommendations on migrants breaches privacy laws
The UK information commissioner is investigating claims that the use of algorithms by the Home Office to make recommendations on migrants breaches privacy laws
The Home Office could be banned from unlawfully using computer algorithms to recommend whether migrants should be deported.
Privacy International has filed a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) over the Home Office’s collection and processing of information in immigration enforcement operations.
The move follows a successful complaint by the campaign group over the Home Office’s use of GPS tagging to monitor asylum seekers.
The complaint filed on 18 August focuses on two algorithmic tools used for processing migrants’ personal data, known as Identify and Prioritise Immigration Cases (IPIC) and Electronic Monitoring Review Tool (EMRT).
The campaign group claims in a 94-page legal submission that the Home Office is using the tools in a way that limits human involvement in decision-making, and that “design nudges” encourage case workers to accept the tool’s recommendations with little scrutiny.
The complaint comes as public sector organisations adopt more automated tools to assist or replace human decision-making. Although such tools have the potential to improve accuracy and reduce costs, they are being routinely developed and operated behind closed doors with minimum transparency and safeguards, said Privacy International.
It said the IPIC and EMRT tools are “highly intrusive” and could be used to process sensitive data provided to the Home Office relating to an individual’s health, family and other relationships, and potentially data obtained from GPS tracking.
