2.2.3. Introducing Digital Rights

We demand that a new framework for digital citizens’ rights be recognised, enforced, and democratically governed by the inhabitants of Europe.

• Right to Encryption: All citizens have the right that their digital information and communications be conveyed to the intended targets using strong encryption, to prevent interference or eavesdropping from governments or other third parties.
• Right to Computation: All citizens have the right of unconditional and unlimited access to public computing resources and infrastructure.

With regard to the use of algorithms in everyday life, we demand that the following rights be recognised:

• Right to an Algorithmic Opt-Out: An "algorithmic opt-out" rule shall be established: for any algorithmic service, a user can choose to receive an outcome with a "default" profile (i.e. with the user's personal/demographic attributes removed from calculation).
• Right of Interaction: Citizens have the right to know when they are or aren't interacting with an algorithm.
  • When an individual receives an outcome from a service that is based wholly or partially on algorithmic computation, this should be clearly and transparently communicated.
  • Automated decision-making systems are not allowed to "conceal" themselves in interactions with unknowing citizens.
  • On the other side, companies are not allowed to "conceal" human data processing to users who believe themselves to be interacting with an algorithm.
• Right of Equal Treatment: Citizens have the right to be free from algorithmic discrimination.
  • If algorithmic services provide outputs of consistently lower value or quality to or about users coming from historically marginalised backgrounds, this constitutes discrimination.
  • Users should be able to compare outputs based on different demographic profiles (e.g. "would this search result be the same if I were to change the gender or age the algorithm has inferred for me?").
• Public Audits: the EU shall develop an independent public institution to conduct algorithmic audits in a transparent manner, with resources allocated proportional to estimated scope of a) affected citizens and b) potential harms.