US tech firm Palantir has secured a contract with the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to analyse sensitive financial data as part of a push to bolster fraud detection using artificial intelligence.
According to UKTN, the deal marks yet another significant expansion of the Peter Thiel-founded organisation’s footprint across British public institutions, having already worked closely with the government across sectors including the NHS, law enforcement and the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
Under the terms of the contract, Palantir will be granted access to sensitive UK financial data held by the regulator, with the aim of strengthening fraud detection methods.
The FCA contract is worth more than £30,000 a week, adding to a portfolio that sees the firm hold more than £500m in UK public sector deals overall — a figure that underscores just how deeply embedded Palantir has become within the British state.
However, the arrangement has not been without controversy. Palantir’s work with the British government has long been a source of unease, owing in part to the company’s operations in a number of highly criticised areas. These include its involvement in Israeli military activity, its work with the US government’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and wider concerns surrounding its role in invasive surveillance practices.
The decision to place sensitive financial data in the hands of Palantir has now sparked a fresh wave of concern. Critics have raised questions about the risks of using an AI-based detection model for financial regulation, particularly around the potential for that system to be manipulated by bad actors.
Hickman & Rose partner Christopher Houssemayne warned: “If the FCA relies on an AI-based detection model, a bad actor could take steps to influence that system when it reviews material.”
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