Taiwan must be ready for the dangers posed by generative artificial intelligence (AI) to human rights and freedoms, National Human Rights Commission Chairwoman Chen Chu (陳菊) said yesterday.
The commission considers AI-related challenges to human rights a matter of priority, while giving due credit to the convenience and productivity benefits stemming from the technology, she told a conference in Taipei on human rights.
Citing the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Chen said that algorithmic technology has been linked to certain adverse effects on rights and disadvantaged groups.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
AI-generated disinformation undermines the foundations of speech freedom by attacking the human capacity to think freely, conceptualize unique ideas and hold freely formed personal beliefs, Chen said.
Disinformation’s spread is especially pernicious to the ability of free people to make considered judgements on public affairs, she said.
AI is also accelerating automation in sectors that traditionally employ disadvantaged groups, worsening poverty and social inequality, Chen said.
Algorithms have extensively been used to generate images harmful to women and children, including materials portraying sexual violence and deepfakes created without the consent of the subjects they depicted, she said.
Children, lacking media literacy to discern bot-generated content, have become more vulnerable to negative influence than before due to AI technology, she said.
Taiwan has to recognize the human rights threat posed by generative AI and take steps to prevent abuses, she said.
She said a recent study conducted by the UN commission showed that 75 percent of respondents revealed personal information while interacting with chatbots and worry that these interactions compromised their privacy.
The survey also showed that 61.7 percent of respondents reported experiencing erroneous, inappropriate or discriminatory content created by an AI tool, she said.
About 90 percent of respondents agreed that more conversations should be included in the development of generative AI to protect the representation of disadvantaged minority groups, she said.
In addition, about 80 percent of respondents agreed that governments should regulate or supervise the research and development of the technology to guard against potential harm to human rights, she said.
As a free and democratic nation, Taiwan must ensure its generative AI technology would respect the values of human dignity and free development of personality, and not be applied in ways that impede freedom, Chen said.
A fugitive in a suspected cosmetic surgery fraud case today returned to Taiwan from Canada, after being wanted for six years. Internet celebrity Su Chen-tuan (蘇陳端), known as Lady Nai Nai (貴婦奈奈), and her former boyfriend, plastic surgeon Paul Huang (黃博健), allegedly defrauded clients and friends of about NT$1 billion (US$30.66 million). Su was put on a wanted list in 2019 when she lived in Toronto, Canada, after failing to respond to subpoenas and arrest warrants from the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. Su arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 5am today on an EVA Air flight accompanied by a
COVID-19 infections have climbed for three consecutive weeks and are likely to reach another peak between next month and June, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. Weekly hospital visits for the disease increased by 19 percent from the previous week, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said. From Tuesday last week to yesterday, 21 cases of severe COVID-19 and seven deaths were confirmed, and from Sept. 1 last year to yesterday, there were 600 cases and 129 deaths, he said. From Oct. 1 last year to yesterday, 95.9 percent of the severe cases and 96.7 percent of the deaths
Restarting the No. 2 reactor at the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant would take up to 18 months, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said today. Kuo was answering questions during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Economics Committee, where legislators are considering amendments to the Renewable Energy Development Act (再生能源發展條) amid concerns about the consequences of the Pingtung County reactor’s decommissioning scheduled for May 17. Its decommissioning is to mark the end of Taiwan’s nuclear power production. However, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers have proposed an amendment to the Nuclear Reactor Facilities Regulation Act (核子反應器設施管制法) that would extend the life of existing
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday demanded that Somalia reverse its decision prohibiting Taiwanese passport holders from entering or transiting through the country. Somalia said it is following the “one China” principle based on UN Resolution 2758. The ministry said that Somalia is misinterpreting the resolution under China’s instigation, creating a false impression that Taiwan is subordinate to China. The Somali Civil Aviation Authority told airlines on Tuesday last week that starting today, any passengers with passports or travel documents issued from Taiwan or its affiliated institutions would not be allowed to enter or transit through Somalia. The decision comes as Taiwan is boosting