European Commission guidelines on prohibited AI practices under EU AI Act

The European Commission (EC) has published guidelines on prohibited AI practices, as defined by the EU AI Act. The guidelines provide an overview of the prohibited AI practices under Article 5 of the EU AI Act, which are deemed unacceptable due to their potential risks to European values and fundamental rights. Article 5, which prohibits the placing on the EU market, putting into service or use of certain AI systems for manipulative, exploitative, social control or surveillance practices, started to apply from 2 February. The guidelines specifically address practices such as harmful manipulation, social scoring and real-time remote biometric identification, among others. The guidelines are designed to ensure the consistent, effective and uniform application of the EU AI Act across the EU. While they offer valuable insights into the EC's interpretation of the prohibitions, they are non-binding, with authoritative interpretations reserved for the Court of Justice of the European Union. The guidelines provide legal explanations and practical examples to help stakeholders understand and comply with the EU AI Act's requirements.

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