As migration management systems across the globe increasingly adopt advanced digital technologies, new challenges emerge at the intersection of technological innovations, human rights, and data protection. From artificial intelligence (dataAI) and large-scale surveillance systems to health data monitoring tools, these technologies are transforming migration governance. While they promise efficiency and enhanced capabilities for managing complex migration dynamics, their deployment raises serious concerns about compliance with human rights and refugee law, as well as data protection standards stemming from international and EU law frameworks. This blog symposium stems from the discussions and debates held during the Workshop on Advanced Digital Technologies in Migration Management: Data Protection and Fundamental Rights Concerns, organized on 4 September 2024 at the 2024 ESIL Annual Conference in Vilnius, by the Interest Group on Migration and Refugee Law of the European Society of International Law (ESIL), in partnership with the Human Rights Research League (HRRL) and the CoSME (Community Sponsorship for Migrants in Europe) Project. It seeks to explore these pressing issues through contributions that critically examine specific technologies, their regulatory frameworks, and the potential risks they pose to the rights of migrants and protection seekers.
More specifically, this symposium highlights the impact of new technologies on the protection of the rights of people on the move, shedding light on the delicate balance between harnessing innovation to achieve efficiency and safeguarding human rights. By focusing on specific regulatory frameworks, the contributions in this series unpack the legal and practical challenges that arise when digital tools are integrated into migration management systems. As these technologies often operate in complex transnational and multi-stakeholder environments, the potential for rights violations – whether through biased algorithms, unlawful data processing, or inadequate safeguards – demands urgent attention. Against this background, the symposium’s contributions reflect on how we can ensure that the digitalization of migration management aligns with international legal standards while fostering a regulatory environment that respects, fulfills, and protects the human rights of people on the move.
Agnese Palazzi kicks off the symposium by exploring the use of AI in asylum procedures. In particular, her contribution warns that the involvement of AI in asylum procedures, particularly in initial phases, such as the credibility assessment, may give rise to human rights and refugee law violations. From the angle of the European Union’s AI Act, the author also considers the suitability of this legal instrument to protect the rights of asylum-seekers and offers some preliminary (but critical) reflections on the effectiveness of the safeguards it provides.
Irene Baceiredo-Macho then highlights the data protection concerns underpinning the European Border Surveillance System (EUROSUR), the framework for data exchange and the cooperation between Frontex and the EU Member States. This blogpost explains the key components of EUROSUR. It showcases how the exchange of information under EUROSUR and the defined purposes of the system may lead to the unlawful processing of personal data.
Finally, Francesca Tassinari concludes the symposium with an analysis of the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) and the concerns raised by its assessment of the high epidemic risks posed by visa-exempt third-country nationals in the EU. This post clarifies how ETIAS processes the health data of third-country nationals and criticizes the lack of specific safeguards to protect the rights of data subjects under Article 8 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.
Striking a fair balance between efficiency and protection is crucial to ensure that technological innovations make a positive contribution to migration management. But can this balance be struck without compromising the fundamental human rights protection of people on the move, particularly those crossing borders to seek asylum? This question lies at the heart of ongoing debates on the integration of advanced digital technologies in migration management. While these tools hold the promise to streamline asylum or visa procedures and enhance decision-making, they also risk reinforcing structural inequalities, perpetuating discriminatory practices, and undermining the rights of people in vulnerable situations, such as asylum seekers. Taken together, these contributions provide valuable and critical insights into the pressing legal issues surrounding the use of advanced digital technologies in migration management and invite further debate on the future of human rights and refugee law in this context.
