On December 18, 2024, the Dutch data protection authority (AP) requested public comments on prohibited social scoring artificial intelligence (AI) systems under the EU AI Act.

Article 5(1)(c) of the AI Act prohibits the placing on the market, putting into service for the specific purpose, or use of AI systems for the evaluation or classification of natural persons or groups of persons over a certain period of time based on their social behavior or known, inferred, or predicted personal or personality characteristics, with the social score leading to either or both of the following:

• detrimental or unfavorable treatment of certain natural persons or groups of persons in social contexts that are unrelated to the contexts in which the data was originally generated or collected; and/or
• detrimental or unfavorable treatment of certain natural persons or groups of persons that is unjustified or disproportionate to their social behavior or its gravity.

This follows the AP's request for comment on the manipulative and exploitative AI systems and emotion recognition AI systems under the AI Act.

The provisions on prohibited AI systems under Article 5 of the EU AI Act enter into force on February 2, 2025.

Social scoring AI systems

Firstly, the AP highlighted the criteria for the prohibition to apply to social scoring AI systems.

Regarding the evaluation or classification of individuals or groups, the AP provided that such a process may result in the disadvantageous or unfavorable treatment of certain natural persons or groups of persons.

On adverse or unfavorable treatment, the AP held that systems that favor people could also fall under the ban in certain cases if they indirectly result in disadvantageous or unfavorable treatment of other persons. Notably, the AP clarified that since disadvantageous or unfavorable treatment is not explained in the AI Act, the social context in which such treatment takes place does not have to be related to the context in which the data were originally generated or collected. In addition, the adverse or unfavorable treatment must at least be either unjustified or disproportionate in relation to the seriousness of the social behavior.

Public comments may be submitted until February 7, 2024.

You can read the press release here and the policy document here, both only available in Dutch.