A legal analysis of the co-existence of machine learning and data privacy in light of the General Data Protection Regulation

Abstract

Data Privacy Law has been greatly challenged by the emergence of Artificial Intelligence. When the GDPR came into force in 2018 there were speculations that Machine Learning systems could possibly be rendered illegal under the newly drafted provisions specifically tackling automated decision making. The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the efficacy of the safeguards, principles and provisions in the GDPR which shed light on Machine Learning systems that make use of personal data to draw inferences and make decisions. Two years after the implementation of the GDPR, this paper seeks to outline the current sentiment on the efficacy of such provisions and aims to embody the way forward after careful examination of the remedies and obligations provided to data subjects and data controllers respectively.