The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Data Protection Laws in Pakistan. A Critical Analysis

Abstract

The legal framework within Pakistan lacks a specific comprehensive data protection legislation and instead depends on Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016, which takes more of a cybercrime approach. At the same time, there is investment in Artificial Intelligence technologies and their innovation at a government level, which encourages their adoption across various domains. Such interfaces propose overlaps and conflicts challenge the deeply interwoven nature of AI's sophisticated algorithms alongside its data-intensive character and fundamental data protection principles that are feebly placed within law. There is a legislative gap regarding data protection which increases vulnerability to emerging AI technologies. The data protection offered by PECA is fixated on cybercrimes which means there is no pro-active shielding for personal data. With Pakistan actively adopting AI technologies, there is a need for flexible data protection policies ensuring the responsible use of data and ethics in AI systems. The features inherently associated with AI, such as the claim of requiring an extensive amount of data and hypothesized sophisticated algorithms, fundamentally lacking proper data protection within existing legislation poses a danger. This research critically examines the effect of AI on Pakistan’s current legal framework of data protection, determines gaps and shortcomings in the current legal system, investigates perspective of legislative experts, policymakers, and technologist, and recommends enforcing or relegislating data protection laws according to global benchmarks.