6. Automated Decision-Making

Relevant legal provisions:
This section is based on POPIA Section 71(1), Section 71(2), and Section 71(3).

Original legal text:
“A data subject may not be subject to a decision which results in legal consequences for him, her or it, or which affects him, her or it to a substantial degree, which is based solely on the basis of the automated processing of personal information intended to provide a profile of such person including his or her performance at work, or his, her or its creditworthiness, reliability, location, health, personal preferences or conduct.” POPIA, Section 71(1).

“A responsible party must not take a decision referred to in subsection (1) unless—
(a) the decision—
(i) has been taken in connection with the conclusion or execution of a contract, and—
(aa) the request of the data subject in terms of the contract has been met; or
(bb) appropriate measures have been taken to protect the data subject’s legitimate interests; or
(ii) is governed by a law or code of conduct in which appropriate measures are specified for protecting the legitimate interests of data subjects; or
(b) the data subject has consented to the processing.” POPIA, Section 71(2).

“A responsible party must provide a data subject with sufficient information about the underlying logic of the automated processing of the information relating to him or her to enable the data subject to make representations.” POPIA, Section 71(3).

Related Policy / Guidance: South Africa National Artificial Intelligence Policy Framework

Relevant policy direction: South Africa’s National AI Policy Framework is not a binding AI law, but it provides policy guidance for future AI governance. It emphasizes ethical AI, transparency and explainability, human-centred deployment, and human oversight over important AI decisions. The OECD summary of the framework notes that it is intended as a foundation for future AI regulation and that it emphasizes human-centred AI systems, where AI should augment rather than replace human decision-making.

Use of Automated Processing

Our system uses automated processing to:

☐ Transcribe responses
☐ Categorize responses
☐ Score or rank participants
☐ Generate profiles
☐ Make decisions affecting individuals

Human Involvement

The level of human involvement is:

☐ No human involvement, fully automated
☐ Human review before decisions are finalized
☐ Human review available upon request

Right to Contest Decisions

Users can challenge automated decisions via:

☐ Email
☐ Phone
☐ Web form
☐ Not available

Explanation of Decisions

We provide users with:

☐ Explanation of decision outcomes
☐ Information about underlying logic
☐ No explanation provided

Legal Basis for Automated Decisions

Automated decisions are based on:

☐ User consent
☐ Contract necessity
☐ Legal requirement
☐ Not applicable

Safeguards Implemented

We implement the following safeguards:

☐ Human oversight
☐ Bias monitoring
☐ Regular audits
☐ Documentation of model behavior
☐ Other: [specify]