Japan Eases Privacy Rules to Boost AI Development

Tokyo, July 10 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s House of Councillors on Friday enacted a bill to revise a law to ease restrictions on the use of personal data for artificial intelligence development while strengthening safeguards against misuse. At a plenary meeting, the upper chamber of the Diet, the country’s parliament, passed the bill by a majority vote with support from the Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition and the opposition forces of the Democratic Party for the People and Team Mirai. The revision, which cleared the House of Representatives in May, is scheduled to take effect within two years of promulgation in principle. Detailed operational rules will be spelled out in regulations and guidelines. In the opposition side, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Komeito, Sanseito and the Japanese Communist Party rejected the bill, arguing that concerns have not been dispelled that the revision could disadvantage the public. The revised law creates an exemption allowing businesses and others to collect and provide personal data without the individuals’ consent solely for statistical analysis and AI development. The exemption is aimed at strengthening Japan’s competitiveness in the global AI race. The exemption covers sensitive personal information, including criminal records, race and medical history, despite calls from some opposition parties to exclude such data. To deter abuse, the revision introduces a system making those that illegally obtained or used personal data pay administrative penalties equivalent to the profits they unlawfully earned. The measure, however, will apply only to serious cases affecting more than 1,000 individuals, reflecting concerns in the business community that broader penalties could discourage legitimate data use. Opposition parties, meanwhile, had criticized the penalty system as insufficient. The Upper House also enacted a bill to revise the digital administration advancement law, which had also cleared the Lower House in May. The revision establishes a framework allowing certified private-sector operators to use government-held data, including map information, for purposes such as developing autonomous driving technology. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]