Commission facing Big Tech's 'very well-resourced legal teams' in data protection cases

Jeremy Godfrey, chairperson of Coimisiún na Meán arriving at the Dail for the Joint Committee on Artificial Intelligence to discuss recent issues around 'nudification' apps, deepfakes and consent and AI: truth and democracy. Photo: Leah Farrell/© RollingNews.ie

Ireland’s Data Protection Commission is not standing on a “neutral field” as it battles to regulate to the “extent that we want to”, one of its commissioners has said.

Des Hogan told an Oireachtas committee on Tuesday that his organisation stands up against “very well-resourced legal teams” when big tech firms challenge the fines it has imposed for breaching data protection rules, with the judicial reviews being taken against most of those decisions “a difficulty”.