What Is Social Scoring?
Social Scoring is the evaluation or classification of people over a period of time based on their social behaviour or personal characteristics, leading to detrimental treatment in contexts unrelated to where the data was collected, or treatment that is unjustified or disproportionate — a practice prohibited by the EU AI Act.
Social Scoring — the evaluation or classification of people over a period of time based on their social behaviour or personal characteristics, leading to detrimental treatment in contexts unrelated to where the data was collected, or treatment that is unjustified or disproportionate — a practice prohibited by the EU AI Act.
Article 5 of the EU AI Act bans AI-driven social scoring by both public and private actors where it produces unfair outcomes. The concern is "function creep": a score derived in one setting (for example, online behaviour) being used to deny housing, credit, or services in an unrelated setting. It is one of the Act's prohibited practices, in force since 2 February 2025.
Source: EU AI Act, Article 5(1)(c)
Plain-language explanation
Article 5 of the EU AI Act bans AI-driven social scoring by both public and private actors where it produces unfair outcomes. The concern is "function creep": a score derived in one setting (for example, online behaviour) being used to deny housing, credit, or services in an unrelated setting. It is one of the Act's prohibited practices, in force since 2 February 2025.
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