Source: AFP
From genomic information to internet-connected cars, the United States is rethinking its data protection policies — with further trade restrictions targeting China on the cards — as technology like artificial intelligence poses new risks.
Only last week, President Joe Biden took steps to expand Washington’s national security toolbox, sounding the alarm about potential dangers from Chinese vehicles and technology, a day after issuing an order to limit the flow of sensitive personal data abroad.
The fear is that such data can be used to monitor citizens, including those in sensitive jobs, or to train artificial intelligence models.
The use of sensitive data to develop artificial intelligence could allow adversaries to use the technology to target US individuals for espionage or blackmail, such as by recognizing patterns in data sets to identify individuals whose government connections would otherwise they were hiding.
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Washington is beginning to recognize the “strategic and national security value of data,” said Lindsay Gorman, senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
He noted that the Commerce Department’s investigation into the dangers of Chinese technology in connected vehicles is “a long-term look at the implementation level of the future Internet.”
“We will have to wait for further investigations into the data generated in the internet of things,” he said.
‘Recalibrate’
Source: AFP
The moves signal “broader concerns about national security risks stemming from unrestricted free access to data,” said Emily Benson of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Until now, Chinese companies could legally buy bulk US data, noted Martin Chorzempa, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
That creates an “imbalance,” he said, adding that the latest order closes a “loophole.”
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Washington has tried to use national security grounds to limit the ability of foreign companies to buy US companies and access US data — but businesses could still obtain the information.
A Duke University study published in November found that sensitive data about active-duty military members is not difficult to obtain, with information available through data brokers for as little as 12 cents per record.
“By and large what we’re seeing is a recalibration of the approach of the United States,” which has traditionally leaned toward free data flows, said Benson, director of the CSIS project on trade and technology.
“That era seems to be behind us,” he told AFP.
Game changing technology
The approach to data comes as Washington mounts a broader push to boost economic growth and maintain the U.S. lead in the technology competition with China — while also putting up national security guardrails.
A key factor is artificial intelligence, which can quickly analyze and manipulate massive data when conducting espionage or cyber operations.
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“Part of that is a fundamental security approach to limiting some high-risk AI capabilities,” Benson said.
At the same time, Washington’s need to stay ahead of AI has driven other federal policies, such as the CHIPS Act, which funnels $39 billion into manufacturing incentives.
On Monday, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said artificial intelligence has been a “game changer” in demand for advanced chips, adding that the U.S. can eventually house the entire supply chain to produce such semiconductors.
The largest global semiconductor manufacturing capacity is currently located in China and East Asia, according to the US Semiconductor Industry Association.
Am I updated?
“China has been very proactive in building its own data protection and data security regime,” said Chorzempa.
“One element of that is restrictions on what data can be transferred across borders,” he added, noting that foreign companies won’t necessarily be able to get data from China about its citizens.
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The US moves represent that it is coming more in line with the governance regimes of its close partners, CSIS’s Benson said.
The European Union has strict data protection laws, including the 2018 General Data Protection Regulation, and rules covering the flow of bulk commercial data between devices.
Japan pushes for data flow while ensuring confidence in privacy and security.
“It will be interesting to see to what extent (US action) actually facilitates greater convergence between regimes or whether we are in uncharted territory in terms of digital governance,” Benson said.
Source: AFP