Clearview AI fined $33.7M by Dutch watchdog for ‘illegal database’

By Emir Yildirim

ISTANBUL (AA) – The Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) fined the facial recognition firm Clearview AI for $33.7 million due to building “an illegal database with billions of photos of faces,” the watchdog said on Tuesday.

The US-based firm Clearview’s artificial intelligence (AI) has built an illegal database with more than 30 billion photos of people, including the Dutch people, the DPA said in a statement.

Clearview, reportedly embraced US government and law enforcement agencies, converted the photos into a unique biometric code per face.

The companies using Clearview’s AI-powered services in the Netherlands will also be subject to fines, according to the DPA.

The watchdog noted that the company failed to adequately inform people registered in its vast database, refusing access to those who requested to see their data, indicating multiple breaches of the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The DPA said that if the company does not comply with the order to stop its violations, it will pay an additional penalty of a total of $5.6 million.

“This really shouldn’t go any further, we have to draw a very clear line at incorrect use of this sort of technology,” said Aleid Wolfsen, chairman of the DPA.