The Information and Data Protection Commissioner Ian Deguara participated in the panel discussion during the MITLA (Malta IT Law Association) Annual Conference, "Legal Horizons: AI, Fundamental Rights, and the Future of Digital Law", which was held recently.

Mr Deguara had the opportunity to join a distinguished panel alongside Alessandro Mantelero and Mireille Sant (Caruana).

Prof. Mantelero shared valuable insights on the FRIA model, developed in collaboration with the Autoritat Catalana de Protecció de Dades. The IDPC is currently exploring potential collaboration to host a workshop and introduce the FRIA model to the Maltese business community.

During his intervention, Mr Deguara highlighted several key points:

• The complementarity between the GDPR and the AI Act, particularly how the overlapping requirements help safeguard fundamental rights, including the critical role of human oversight and the use of DPIAs and FRIAs.
• Controllers deploying AI systems that process personal data must comply fully with the obligations under the GDPR.
• A Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) is required when processing is likely to result in high risk to individuals’ rights and freedoms. Such assessments help identify and mitigate risks and must be thoroughly documented and periodically reviewed.
• Having one common template for DPAI and FRIA will provide for more legal certainty and beneficial to SMEs.
• The necessity of robust safeguards when developing and deploying AI systems, with an emphasis on incorporating privacy-enhancing technologies.

A special thanks goes to MITLA’s Executive Committee for organising such a successful and engaging event.