D7.4: Implications of profiling practices on democracy

Title: THE EFFECT OF PROFILING ON FUNDAMENTAL LEGAL PRINCIPLES

The effect of profiling on fundamental legal principles

For the time being, let us simply assume that there are cases in which profiling really has negative consequences for human beings. The core question posed in this report is to what extent these negative consequences would impact democracy and the rule of law. If I understand Hildebrandt, Gutwirth & De Hert correctly, they see the main manifestations of democracy and the rule of law that are relevant in the field of profiling to be privacy, data protection, and the protection of ipse-identity. These three could roughly be called fundamental legal principles that are tools for the high goals of democracy and the rule of law. They are interrelated but should be viewed separately because they each have somewhat different goals and characters.

Now what is the impact of profiling-with-negative-consequences on these three principles? I would like to see a more precise analysis of how they are affected by profiling. The argumentation in the texts at these points tends to be rather general and could be a lot sharper. This is not the place for an in-depth analysis, but here are some thoughts to consider.