Privacy group says AI training firm tracks its contract workers

Privacy group noyb has filed five complaints against Scale AI, accusing the US company of unlawfully monitoring contract workers in Europe. The workers do AI training tasks on a platform called Outlier. Noyb says the tracking goes well past what is needed to do the job. Scale calls the claims unfounded and inaccurate.

What is alleged

Outlier contractors label data and rate AI-generated answers to help improve AI models. Scale says its customers include OpenAI, xAI, Anthropic, Google and the US government. Because the work is remote, Scale checks who workers are and tracks what they do. Noyb says that checking and tracking went too far.

• Identity checks run by a company called Persona collect biometric data, such as face scans.
• Persona also gathers IP addresses, device details, location, home addresses and credit data.
• Scale collects system data and device activity, including activity outside Outlier work.
• That data is allegedly sent to LinkedIn, TikTok, Facebook and analytics services, as often as every few seconds.

Noyb warns the information could be used to profile people and show them targeted ads. Noyb lawyer Lisa Steinfeld Leiser asked, "Why should LinkedIn or Facebook know which tasks you're working on?"

The legal case

The complaints were filed in France, Italy, the Netherlands and Austria under the GDPR, the EU's main privacy law, which took effect in 2018. Noyb argues Scale has no legal basis to install tracking software on workers' devices. It also says Scale broke the rule that companies collect only data that is strictly necessary. Finally, it says Scale ignored workers' requests to see what data it holds on them.

Noyb wants the data protection authorities in those countries to investigate fully and, if needed, fine Scale. A French research group, DIPLab, published a report earlier this month on Outlier's data collection. Its co-author, Thomas Le Bonniec, said this would be seen as unacceptable in any other form of employment in the EU.

Scale's response

Scale told The Register that Outlier's practices are disclosed to contributors and require their consent. It says it uses standard tools to verify identities, prevent fraud, protect confidential project information and make sure people are paid accurately. These are allegations, not findings. No regulator has ruled yet.

What to do

Anyone doing gig or remote work can take a few simple steps to see what they have agreed to.

• Read what monitoring software your platform asks you to install.
• Check what data it collects, especially outside work hours or work tasks.
• Ask the company for a copy of the data it holds on you.
• Use a separate device for work if you can.

What happens next

It is not yet known whether the regulators will open investigations or how long that would take. Noyb has asked for full investigations, and any fines would be up to the authorities.