Google investigates ethical AI team member over handling sensitive data

Alphabet Inc’s Google is investigating a member of its ethical AI team and locked down the corporate account linked to that person after discovering that thousands of files had been retrieved from its server and shared with external accounts, said the company announced on Wednesday.

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Axios, who first reported the latest investigation of a member of Google’s AI team, said Margaret Mitchell used automated scripts to browse through her posts and find examples showing discriminatory treatment of Timnit Gebru, a former employee of the AI ​​team who was fired.

Gebru, who is black, was one of Google’s top AI ethics researchers and was fired in December. While Gebru claimed she was fired for criticizing diversity efforts within Google’s artificial intelligence unit, the company took issue with it.

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“Our security systems automatically lock an employee’s corporate account when they detect that the account is at risk of being compromised due to identification issues or when an automated rule involving the processing of sensitive data has been triggered. “a Google representative said in a statement.

“We are actively investigating this matter as part of standard procedures to gather further details.”

Mitchell did not immediately respond to a request for comment through his LinkedIn account.

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Google’s diversity efforts have been called into question by employees and add to years of angst, including several resignations and layoffs in the AI ​​department, raising doubts that the efforts of Google company to minimize the potential damage of its services are sufficient.

Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar and Maria Ponnerhath in Bengaluru; Edited by Arun Koyyur