Could the AI system negatively impact vulnerable groups or fail to protect their rights?
Could the AI system negatively impact vulnerable groups or fail to protect their rights?
- AI systems can unintentionally marginalize or harm vulnerable individuals or groups, such as children, the elderly, migrants, ethnic minorities, or individuals with cognitive or psychosocial disabilities.
- These groups often face barriers to representation, consent, and redress. AI systems may reflect or amplify societal biases, particularly if training data lacks diversity or design decisions fail to account for structural inequalities.
- The EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the AI Act emphasize special protection for vulnerable populations, especially where AI is deployed in high-risk domains like education, health, welfare, or justice.
If you answered Yes then you are at risk
If you are not sure, then you might be at risk too
Recommendations
- Conduct a Human Rights Impact Assessment (HRIA) early in the design process, paying special attention to risks of exclusion, discrimination, or harm to vulnerable populations.
- Engage with advocacy organizations, domain experts, and affected groups to surface risks that may not be visible from a technical perspective.
- Ensure that training data includes diverse representations and that the system can adapt to variations in user ability, language, culture, or socioeconomic background.
- Include clear channels for recourse, appeal, and human oversight, especially for automated decisions that significantly affect individuals.
- Review deployment contexts for hidden power asymmetries or coercion risks, particularly where vulnerable groups may be subject to profiling or behavioral nudging.