Author: Gaurav Katiyar, University of Lucknow
INTRODUCTION
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has marked a turning point in human history, offering ground-breaking improvements in many sectors, but posing some serious concerns on ethical, societal and legal grounds. The rapid growth of AI technologies and their extensive penetration into the everyday life necessitate strong regulatory systems that enable to address new risks and provide for protection of basic principles.
There is no denying the fact that AI has changed various aspects of human life and holds great potential. However, the rapid spread of such AI technologies also poses serious concerns about democracy and cybersecurity. The challenge of artificial intelligence’s arrival is therefore dual; it advances in sectors like transportation, finance, and health on one side but threatens democratic principles as well as cyber security frameworks.
AI is considered one of the main threats to democracy. These propaganda campaigns controlled by artificial intelligence which are capable to manipulate public opinion, cause disinformation and affect electoral outcomes can undermine democratic processes. Using tailored political messages from an individual perspective in social media platforms that target people through AI algorithms worsens polarization while undermining confidence in democracies.
The rapid strides being made In AI technologies have posed hitherto unknown cyber security threats. Bad actors can use AI technology to create more refined malware that can evade the conventional security systems. Critical infrastructure, financial systems and personal data are all at high risk from AI driven malware, phishing scams or hacker-tools automatons. This proliferation of AI based cyber-threats underlines the necessity for strong regulatory frameworks that would ensure ethical development and deployment of these technologies.
In order to deal with these issues holistically, it is necessary that we put in place comprehensive regulations that protect democratic ideals while at the same time strengthen cyber resilience. Policymakers can minimize risks associated with AI’s emergence by setting up guidelines for its ethical use; fostering international collaboration on cybersecurity projects and encouraging transparency in decision-making processes.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Chat GPT, Ethical concerns, Legal frameworks, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Democracy, Cybersecurity
Types of AI:
[AI can be classified into four types based on their capabilities and level of adaptation:
- Reactive AI: These systems optimise outputs based on specific inputs, but they lack memory or the ability to learn.
- Limited memory AI: This type of AI can adapt based on past experiences or new data. They have a limited memory capacity and update themselves to handle novel situations.
- Theory-of-mind AI: These AI systems have extensive learning capabilities and can retain past experiences. They are not self-aware or conscious.
- Self-aware AI: This type of AI is just a fiction yet. It would possess self-awareness and consciousness, recognizing its own existence raising ethical concerns of AI dominance in near future.]1
Impact and applications of AI
- Healthcare: AI can play a vital role in the genome analysis, personalised medication, Early diagnosis hence significantly reducing mortality and morbidity.
- Natural Language Processing: Various virtual assistants are powered by AI like Siri, Gemini, Alexa and provide features like voice recognition, voice command, service automation, language processing, etc. hence enhancing user experience and control.
- Financial Services: AI can be useful in providing financial services like fraud detection, risk assessment; algorithmic trading, personalized financial advice etc. due to its enhanced data analysis and processing capabilities.
- E-commerce and Marketing: AI helps organizations to improve their customer targeting and it is used by businesses to personalize customer experience, make product recommendations, optimize pricing practices and understand the behaviour of shoppers.
- Education: AI helps in creating personalized learning experiences for students and remote teaching platforms for ease of access to digital education.
- Agriculture: AI is used for crop monitoring, precision farming, and automated agricultural machinery. It can also play a vital role in the field of Genetically modified plants and organisms.
- Cybersecurity: Al helps in detecting and responding to cyber threats by analyzing traffic and detecting potential risks like viruses, malware, data hijacking, DDOS attacks etc.
Need of Regulations: Major Areas of concern associated with AI
- AI- A threat to Republicanism and Democracy?
It is alleged that in the US presidential elections of 2016, political hackers from Russia, supposedly connected to the Russian Authorities targeted the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Hilary Clinton’s presidential campaign. They managed to access emails and other classified files which they then distributed through platforms such as WikiLeaks. The purpose of these leaks was to undermine Clinton’s campaign and throw into question people’s trust in the system of conducting election.
In a Democratic and Republic country like India, the advent of AI could impact the election process in ways similar to the impact of Russian hackers on the 2016 US elections which in turn could result in failure of Ideals of our nation. Here are some potential scenarios:
- Disinformation Campaigns: These are manipulative campaigns that rely on AI technology to generate and spread a lot of false information, fake news, and propaganda on social media networks or platforms. In line with the Russian interference during the US elections, this can change public attitude, reduce trust for democratic institutions and alter voter conduct.
- Micro-targeting and Persuasion: AI is able to scrutinize huge volumes of voter preference details, demographics as well as behaviour to tailor political messages directly towards them. If AI-driven campaigns could send different messages to every voter that were tailored based on their psychological profiles, they might effectively control then influence voting patterns.
- Social Media Manipulation: Through amplifying divisive contents as well as spreading political propaganda by use of bots and automated accounts among others it leads to coordinated manipulation of online discourse. This may result into echo chambers, polarizing public debates thus distorting the information environment in favour of certain political actors or agendas.
- Election Tampering: Election infrastructures such as electronic voting machines voter registration databases and tallying systems could be targets of cyber-attacks powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI). By exploiting flaws in these systems malevolent actors would interfere with voting processes perpetrate election fraud.
AI: A threat to humanity?
[“Mitigating the risk of extinction from A.I. should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks, such as pandemics and nuclear war,”]2
The unintended consequences of AI can be risky to humanity, such as job displacement, prejudiced decision making and autonomous weapon systems. Lack of care in management may see AI worsen societal inequalities, endanger privacy rights and democratic freedoms while destabilizing the world at large.
There is indeed a rapid technological development in AI with limited ethical guidelines thereby leading to misuses, exploitations and unforeseen aftermaths. In order to prevent these risks associated with AI, proactive steps must be taken so that transparency, accountability and responsible use can minimize its likely harm while maximizing its positive aspects to mankind.
AI: an Unforeseen Challenge to Cybersecurity:
In India, AI’s ascent raises issues for cybersecurity:
- AI-Powered Attacks: This enables AI to create complex cyberattacks that can bypass traditional protection measures.
- Data Privacy: The use of AI in gathering data has raised privacy concerns.
- AI System Vulnerabilities: Bad actors can manipulate AI algorithms, which puts critical infrastructure at risk.
- Bias and Discrimination: Cybersecurity practices based on AI algorithms may have biased results.
- Cybersecurity Talent Gap: The shortage of skilled personnel hinders the defense against this type of AI-induced threat.
CURRENT POSITION OF INDIA IN AI REGULATIONS
[In India, as of now, there are no specific provisions for AI but the Government is worried about this lack. Recently though, IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw acknowledged that in India, there are no regulations on Ai and it would be impossible to have regulation on Ai by Indian government due to many moral and ethical issues pertaining to development of Ai in India. The India government has also established a MeiTY (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology) office in its own nation.]3
This means that there should be regulations guiding the introduction of AI considering how fundamentally it changes things and their risks for people, society and global stability. In this regard, as AI technologies continue to advance and spread across various sectors, robust regulatory frameworks are essential to make sure that these developments are in conformity with ethical considerations, safety standards and legal requirements.
Effective regulation of AI calls for a multi-faceted approach that encompasses multiple aspects including; ethical use; safety standards; transparently , data privacy; bias reduction ; economic impact ; national security among others. To avoid the negative impacts that can arise from open-ended development of AI technology, regulators need to establish clear guidelines and mechanisms towards compliance.
Moreover, regulatory interventions are imperative in fostering accountability among developers, users and adopters leading to risk mitigation and trust building around artificial intelligent systems. One can also bring about responsible AI practices via transparency requirements as well as mechanisms for auditing and oversight so that decision-making procedures remain susceptible to scrutiny.
Moreover, the international community must come together to address the global consequences of AI governance because it is a multi-national issue. Harmonizing regulatory approaches and promoting cooperation between countries could enable the sharing of best practices, encourage common standards and limit regulatory arbitrage.
Simply put, regulations are necessary for managing the responsible creation and application of AI tools in line with societal values, ethical principles and legal rules. Working towards a future where AI facilitates positive change in society but does not pose risks requires the adoption of a proactive collaborative regulation by all stakeholders concerned.
REFERENCES
Online Articles / Sources Referred
- https://cloudacademy.com/blog/types-of-ai/#:~:text=What%20are%20the%204%20main,of%20mind%20and%20self%2Daware
- https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/30/technology/ai-threat-warning.html
- https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-13111-laws-governing-ai-in-india-everything-you-should-know.html
Blogs referred: