A serious change in digital civil rights is looming in Baden-Württemberg state politics. The new coalition of the Greens and the CDU under the proposed Prime Minister Cem Özdemir is planning to cut 40 percent of the jobs at the State Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (LfDI). She justifies this step with the federal modernization agenda, which provides for the bundling of competencies at the federal level.
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At the same time, Green-Black wants to significantly promote the technological upgrading of security authorities and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) for surveillance purposes. Nevertheless, the control body that must legally accompany these processes is to be curtailed.
Frank Spaeing, chairman of the German Association for Data Protection (DVD), sharply criticizes the relevant passage in the coalition agreement. He accuses the government of lacking understanding of European values. According to him, progress in a free society must necessarily be carried out in accordance with fundamental rights, which is guaranteed by strong supervision. Spaeing sees the slogan “enabling data protection” used by the coalition as a euphemism for a de facto dismantling of fundamental rights.
The expert also warns that the massive cuts would probably violate the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This requires the member states to provide relevant supervisory authorities with sufficient human resources. This is the only way they can carry out their tasks effectively. The DVD also reminds us of the case law of the European Court of Justice on the independence of data protection supervision. Anyone who deprives a supervisory body of resources inevitably weakens its independence and ability to act.
Between innovation and loss of control
The Baden-Württemberg LfDI, Tobias Keber, also sees the development with concern. He welcomes the goal of promoting digitalization and the use of AI. His authority is already providing intensive advice in this area. However, the controller warns of the consequences of centralization. If the supervision of companies and associations in Bonn were to move to the federal government, local actors such as startups and citizens would lose their direct local contacts. Data protection acts as a trust-building factor. If there is a lack of capacity for advice and control, the population’s acceptance of new technologies risks dwindling.
The planned reduction in personnel is particularly explosive in the context of the planned security policy in the state. The coalition wants to give the police extensive new powers, for example to biometrically compare data on the Internet using automated facial recognition. This marks the end of the Green Party’s previous taboos when it comes to data protection. If the control mechanisms were weakened at the same time, a dangerous imbalance would arise. Experts warn: The increasing number of data protection complaints caused by AI applications actually requires an expansion rather than cuts in supervision in order to prevent frustration and disenchantment with the state.
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