Italy has regulated the police use of artificial intelligence and has established the conditions under which security forces may resort to biometric identification systems. The decree definitively approved by the Government of Giorgia Meloni allows the use of remote biometric identification in real time in exceptional situations, during limited periods, and with authorization from the judicial authority.
The new Italian regulation adapts the national legal framework to the European Artificial Intelligence Regulation and establishes for the first time a specific framework for the use of these systems in police activities. The decision particularly affects facial recognition through cameras, although it maintains limits on when it can be used and who can authorize it.
The regulation also contemplates the subsequent analysis of images obtained during an investigation. In this case, the objective is not to automatically identify a person being captured at that very moment, but to use artificial intelligence systems on material already recorded within a police investigation.
Spain is in a different phase. The Government approved in May the Organic Law project for the proper use and governance of artificial intelligence, which adapts the Spanish framework to the European regulation and establishes the authorities responsible for overseeing its application. The project continues its parliamentary processing.
What exactly does the Italian model allow
Remote biometric identification in real time is reserved in Italy for exceptional circumstances and for a limited period. The use must have judicial authorization and is subject to specific conditions linked to the severity of the crimes and the individuals who may be sought.
The Italian parliamentary documentation establishes that the authorization corresponds to the preliminary investigations judge and must specify the individuals subject to the search and the period during which the system may be used. The initial duration cannot exceed 15 days, although there is the possibility of extension through a reasoned resolution.
The system does not allow a police decision with negative legal effects on a person to be based solely on the automatic result of artificial intelligence. The responsibility for the decision continues to rest with the human operator.
Likewise, the Italian decree prohibits creating biometric databases through the mass and indiscriminate collection of information obtained from the internet. The restriction affects one of the practices that have generated the most concern around the development of facial recognition systems.
The regulation also differentiates between real-time identification and the subsequent analysis of images. This second possibility can be used in investigations of crimes after the events have occurred, always within the conditions set by the legislation.
The framework approved by Rome thus incorporates human oversight and legal responsibility as central elements of the police use of AI, instead of allowing technology to determine on its own the actions of law enforcement.