Homo Digitalis Collaborates Once Again with the Digital World Summit Greece
We are delighted to announce that, for yet another year, the Digital World Summit Greece (DWS Greece) and Homo Digitalis are moving forward with a strategic partnership!
The Digital World Summit Greece (DWS Greece) aims to promote the democratic governance of new technologies. As a dialogue platform, it brings together diverse stakeholders and groups, shaping policies from the grassroots level to the top on issues related to artificial intelligence, platforms, the Internet of Things, and broader technological domains.
Homo Digitalis has actively supported DWS Greece since its inception, and it is a great honor for us to continue doing so dynamically. Together, we aim to contribute to the maturation of public discourse in Greece on issues related to digital rights.
You can learn more about the activities of the Digital World Summit Greece on their website, here.
2024 Article Review – Thank You!
We proudly look back on the past year and the 17 articles we shared with you in 2024, highlighting a variety of topics such as Artificial Intelligence, European Elections, Disinformation, Cybersecurity, GDPR, Climate Change, and the DMA!
A heartfelt thank you to our member-authors: Anastasios Arampatzis, Ioannis Vasilakis, Nikoletta Georgakopoulou, Charalampos Daftsios, christos zanganas, Dimos Kostoulas, Katerina Mezini, Anna Bougia, Avgi Saoulidou, Danai Skevi και Stavroula Chousou!
You can watch a short video we prepared about this here.
Bidding Farewell to 2024 with Pride, Joy, and Endless Gratitude
This year has been filled with significant milestones and successes for Homo Digitalis. Together, we achieved:
Organizing, for the first time in Greece, the General Assembly of European Digital Rights—our network, which is a landmark for the protection of digital rights globally!
Strengthening our team with the hiring of our second employee, enhancing our capacity to drive meaningful change.
Publishing three detailed studies on #AIACT, contributing to the cultivation of an informed public dialogue in Greece.
Volunteering to speak at over 25 schools and engaging with more than 3,500 students, teachers, and parents from every corner of the country.
Promoting transparency and accountability, leading to the imposition of a €175,000 fine on the Ministry of Migration & Asylum for the KENTAUROS and HYPERION systems.
These moments remind us of what we can achieve when we work with vision, passion, and collaboration. We wholeheartedly thank all those who stood by our side—volunteers, partners, and supporters.
Let’s continue making history in 2025!
You can watch the related video we prepared here.
We Publish Our Third Study on the AI Act, Focusing on Article 5 & Prohibited Practices
Today, Homo Digitalis publishes its third study on Regulation 2024/1689, the now widely known AI Act, titled “Artificial Intelligence Act: Analysis of Provisions on Prohibited Practices in Article 5 of Regulation 2024/1689.”
The authors of this study are Sophia Antonopoulou, Lamprini Gyftokosta, Tania Skrapaliori, Eleftherios Chelioudakis, and Stavroula Chousou.
The aim of this Homo Digitalis analysis is to systematically approach each provision of Article 5 of the AI Regulation, related to Manipulative or deceptive techniques, Exploitation of vulnerabilities, Assessment of social behavior, Facial recognition database use, Prediction of criminal offenses, Emotion detection,Biometric categorization systems, and Remote biometric identification.
With our study, we provide targeted questions highlighting the critical aspects of individual provisions, identifying the so-called “gray areas”—points that present ambiguities, overlaps, or potential interpretative challenges. We substantiate our concerns with specific examples and pose precise questions to be addressed by the upcoming guidelines of the European Commission’s AI Office and the national legislator.
As with our first two studies (published in October and November 2024, respectively), our third study also aims to support the Ministry of Digital Governance in its mission to transpose the AI Act into Greek legislation. Additionally, through our detailed analyses and arguments, we aim to contribute to the maturation of public discourse and empower more Civil Society organizations to actively participate in it.
You can read our study, “Artificial Intelligence Act: Analysis of Provisions on Prohibited Practices in Article 5 of Regulation 2024/1689,” (available in EL) here.
We Successfully Completed Our Voluntary Awareness Actions in 10 Schools Across Attica for the Period October–December 2024!
During this school year, from October 2024 to December 2024, Homo Digitalis focused its voluntary awareness efforts on schools in Athens!
With the invaluable support of Education Consultant Ms. Christina Kalfoglou, Psychologist Ms. Elina Kardara, and School Consultant Ms. Maria Panta, we visited 10 schools (public and private junior and high schools) and conducted 16 presentations for approximately 1,400 students, educators, and parents on the topics digital footprint and cyberbullying.
We learned a great deal about the apps children use and the risks they face on various social media platforms. We also discussed the challenges they encounter when trying to report issues on these platforms, often without resolving their problems!
Students shared incidents of cyberbullying and online violence with us, and we talked about ways to address and support them. Educators, on the other hand, expressed their concerns and raised thought-provoking questions regarding the use of mobile phones and artificial intelligence tools in schools.
Yesterday, we concluded our awareness actions for the first trimester of the 2024–2025 school year with an informational event at the 59th Junior High School of Athens, where we spoke with teachers and members of the parents association and teachers about the digital footprint, new digital risks such as deepfakes, misinformation, disinformation, and echo chambers, as well as the Kids Wallet initiative proposed by the Ministry of Digital Governance!
A big thank you to our members, board members, and employees: Sofia Antonopoulou, Niki Georgakopoulou, Lamprini Gyftokosta, and Konstantinos Kakavoulis for their active participation and outstanding contribution to these initiatives!
Together, we are building a safer and more informed digital community!
Homo Digitalis participated in AI Office’s consultation on Prohibited Practices under the AI Act
In November 2024, the European Commission’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Office launched a consultation on AI Act prohibitions and AI system definition.
The guidelines under development will help national competent authorities as well as providers and deployers in complying with the AI Act’s rules on such AI practices ahead of the application of the relevant provisions on 2 February 2025.
Homo Digitalis participated in this public consultation process by submitting our input, in an attempt to highlight challenges and provide further clarity on practical aspects and use cases.
The authors’ team of our public consultation is composed of our Director on Human Rights & Artificial Intelligence, Lamprini Gyftokosta and our members Sophia Antonopoulou and Stavrina Chousou.
You can read our input here.
Stay tuned, since our dedicated report on the AI Act and its provisions on Prohibited Practices is to be published soon!
The fifth open call of NGI TALER is here! Submit your application!
Got a groundbreaking idea for free software and privacy preserving projects that complement our mission as NGI TALER? Missed our first four funding calls? No worries!
NGI TALER’s 5th Open Call is live since 1st of December 2024 and you’ve got almost two month to apply. The deadline is 1st of February 2025, 12:00 CET (noon).
We’re on the lookout for proposals that will revolutionize digital payment systems and contribute to an open, trustworthy, and reliable internet for all.
NGI TALER is offering funding between 5,000 and 50,000 euros! Whether you’re a SME, academic, public sector entity, nonprofit, community, or an individual – we want your innovative ideas!
For example, you can enhance GNU Taler by developing auxiliary tools, improving user experience,creating integrations into FOSS applications (think P2P micropayments in instant messaging, social media platforms, or video conferencing tools), or boosting infrastructure components (like merchant backends), to name a few ideas.
For more info about this and other NGI funding calls, you can visit the NGI – The Next Generation Internet’s website here.
You can read the detailed Open Call, Guide for Applicants, Eligibility Requirements, and FAQs on NLnet Foundation’s website here
Last but not least, you can join our TALER Integration Community Hub (TALER ICH) to discuss and get your questions answered here.
Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity!
NGI TALER is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
Presentation to Educators in Larissa on Cyberbullying
On November 18th, at the invitation of the Educational Advisor for Primary School Teachers in Larissa, Ms. Vasiliki Pilatou, our member Anastasios Arampatzis delivered a presentation to sixth-grade teachers from Ms. Pilatou’s district on the topic of cyberbullying.
The educators expressed great interest in our initiatives and presentation, engaging with us in discussions on questions about cyberbullying as well as critical reflections on the current implementation of the Stop Bullying platform developed by the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs, and Sports.
Homo Digitalis remains at the disposal of educators, parents, and students to inform them about their rights in the digital space and to highlight their concerns.
We publish our Second AI Act Study on market surveillance authorities and the AI governance ecosystem
Today Homo Digitalis publishes its second study on Regulation 2024/1689, the now well-known AI Act, entitled “AI Act: Analysis of Provisions for AI Governance and Competent Market Surveillance Authorities“.
The writing team for the study consists of Homo Digitalis’ Director of Human Rights and AI, Lamprini Gyftokosta, and our member Niki Georgakopoulou.
The purpose of this Homo Digitalis analysis is to highlight some of the critical issues raised by the implementation of the AI governance system provisions, taking into account national structures as well as the civil society perspective.
More specifically, in this analysis we answer the following questions:
- What governance structure does the Regulation propose for AI?
- What does the concept of ‘market surveillance authority’ mean for the AI Regulation?
- What is in Regulation 2019/1020 and why should we consider its provisions together with the AI Act?
- Which Greek authorities meet the requirements set out in the two Regulations and why?
- What governance models have been adopted or are under discussion in other jurisdictions at this time?
- What are our main concerns?
- What are our main suggestions for improvement?
We recall that on 12 November, the Department for Digital Government took the first official step in implementing the AI Act by publishing the list of national authorities for the protection of fundamental rights. These principles include: The Data Protection Authority, the Ombudsman, the Communications Privacy Authority and the National Human Rights Commission.
In this regard, as early as 25 October, with our first Study “Analysis and proposals for the incorporation of the provisions on impact assessment on fundamental rights in Greece“, we had already presented detailed proposals on this issue. If you did not have time to read our Study, we invite you to see the one-page summary we prepared, specifically for the National Fundamental Rights Authorities.
The Ministry’s publication was only the first step. The next critical obligation is the institutional design of the market surveillance authorities, which must be completed by August 2, 2025, in accordance with Article 113 of the Regulation.
The second Study that we are publishing today is precisely intended to assist the Ministry of Digital Governance, which has the task of carrying out the difficult task of synthesizing this ecosystem in Greece, but also, with our detailed analyses and arguments, to help mature the public debate and enable more civil society organizations to actively participate in it.