Spain has investigated whether the company Open AIcreator of ChatGPTviolates the European laws of privacy. The Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) has initiated this Thursday “prior investigation actions”, a movement that comes two weeks after the Italian regulator chose to block “with immediate effect” access to this popular chatbot of artificial intelligence (AI).
As EL PERIÓDICO already advanced last week, the AEPD has asked its European counterparts to include the debate on the regulation of ChatGPT in the Plenary of the European Committee for Data Protection, which was held this Thursday. After that meeting, the regulatory bodies of the European Union (EU) have agreed the creation of a working group set to promote European cooperation and “exchange information on possible coercive measures” that member states may take in the coming weeks.
European coordination
Tech giants like Goal (owner of Facebook and instagram) either Amazon they have their base of European operations in Ireland, which means that the regulator of that country is in charge of determining the application of community laws. Ireland decides and the other countries follow suit.
This is not the case of OpenAI, which is not based in the EU, which opens the door for the regulatory entity of each country to have powers to act on its own, as Italy has done. However, this can lead to a disparity of criteria between nations that causes confusion. The creation of the working group will serve so that the next decisions that are put in place are “harmonized”, that is, in agreement with the other parties.
Lockdown in Italy
This Wednesday, Italy’s regulator set April 30 as the maximum period for OpenAI to meet its requirements, among which are greater transparency regarding the treatment made of user data.
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On March 31, the agency blocked access to ChatGPT on the understanding that the “absence of a legal basis to justify the collection and mass storage of personal data” could imply a violation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the pioneering European privacy law privacy.
OpenAI will have until May 31 to present an action plan to verify the age of users that excludes those under 13 years of age. If the US company does not comply with those requirements, the authorities will keep access to the chatbot restricted.