Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to protect jobseekers' personal data from being harvested by AI-led interview tools.

The UK’s data protection legislation applies to any processing of personal data regardless of the technology being used. As such, organisations that process personal data through the deployment of AI interview tools are required to ensure that the data is processed fairly, lawfully and transparently. Personal data should also be kept secure, its accuracy should be maintained, and it should not be processed for longer than is necessary.

Where individuals have been subject to decisions based solely on automated processing with legal or significant effects on them, including AI-driven decisions in recruitment processes, the legislation also requires organisations to provide the individual with information about the decision that has been taken, and the right for them to contest that decision and to obtain human intervention for it if they believe the decision is incorrect or unfair.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is responsible for monitoring and enforcing data protection laws and has published a range of guidance on how these laws apply to AI systems that process personal data: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/uk-gdpr-guidance-and-resources/artificial-intelligence/. The ICO also has the power to investigate and impose penalties for non-compliance.