Canada’s National Security Transparency Advisory Group has issued its fourth report that offers a sampling of some of the risks, challenges and opportunities related to digitization that were raised by multiple stakeholders over time.
The report notes the Canadian Government’s acknowledgement that efforts to expand its digital capabilities give rise to important questions of means and consequences (intended or otherwise) that determine effectiveness and accountability — and that “. The Group And “it is here where openness and transparency are critically important.”
In addition to profound consequences for individual privacy, the report notes that there are “many ways in which digitization and government’s increasingly data-driven processes challenge transparency” including:
Covertness: transparency may be stunted as digital tools are deployed covertly;
Complexity: digital technologies and algorithmic configurations are beyond the comprehension of most citizens and stakeholders;
Opacity: many digital technologies, perhaps most notably AI systems, rely on elements that are often opaque even to many experts;
Unpredictability: digital technology, such as the use of AI for automated decision systems, often produces unintended consequences, further complicating transparency and accountability.of its own limited progress and systemic challenges, in part, addresses the use of AI.
The Group made 16 recommendations and acknowledges that “engagement alone is not enough to secure improved trust in national security agencies. This must be coupled with changes in policy and practice.”
