Organisations call on National Data Protection Agency to suspend Federal Police surveillance system
In a letter, more than 10 organisations have requested the National Data Protection Agency “to protect the personal data” of Brazilians
Foto: Rafael Neddermeyer/ Fotos Públicas
On Monday, (19), civil society organisations, including Conectas, sent a letter asking the National Data Protection Agency (ANPD) to suspend use of the Automated Biometric Identification System (Abis) by the Federal Police. The federal body could ask the Ministry for Justice and Public Security to suspend it.
The organisations see the Federal Police´s surveillance system as a risk to the fundamental right of personal data protection. The tool holds data, with facial biometrics, on over 50 million Brazilians.
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In the letter, the organisations go on to highlight the possible racial bias of using biometric recognition in public security. According to research by Rede Observatórios de Segurança (Network of Security Observatories), in 2019, 90.5% of people imprisoned using this system were black. A study by Condege (National College of General Public Defenders also showed that “83% of people who are unfairly imprisoned due to errors in recognition are black”.
The document calls on the ANPD to “protect personal data” and “request public authority bodies and organisations to carry out operations into personal data processing and to put together a special report on this area and on the nature of the data along with other processing details”.
