WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Justice has intensified its focus on artificial intelligence, with officials warning Thursday that companies and individuals who deliberately misuse the technology to promote white-collar or other crimes such as price fixing, fraud or market manipulation will risk receiving a harsher sentence.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said the Department will take into account how well a company manages the risks of artificial intelligence technology whenever it evaluates a corporate compliance program. This program is a set of policies and procedures designed to detect misconduct and ensure that executives and employees comply with the law.
The comments from the second-ranking Justice Department leader underscore the extent to which law enforcement officials are concerned about how rapidly developing technology could be exploited by foreign adversaries or corporate criminals to harm the United States upon notice. of a legal responsibility to mitigate the risk of advances in AI.
Monaco unveiled the policy measures a day after the Justice Department announced charges against a former Google software engineer accused of stealing artificial intelligence trade secrets from the Mountain View, California-based company while secretly working with two companies with headquarters in China.
Even as the Justice Department works “to responsibly harness the benefits of AI, we are alert to its risks and will use our tools in new ways to address them,” he said.
Source: With information from AFP
