In September 2025, Spain’s Supreme Court ruled in Civio’s favour after a seven-year legal battle, ordering the government to release the source code of BOSCO, an algorithm determining eligibility for social benefits. The ruling establishes that algorithmic transparency is essential to democratic governance and rejects blanket exemptions based on national security or intellectual property claims.
Civio is now preparing to file new access requests citing the Supreme Court judgment to challenge administrations that refuse compliance. They have identified priority targets from their transparency work, including algorithms used in the social security and public employment services.
By the end of this project, Civio will have mapped non-compliance with the BOSCO ruling across key sectors, documented the arguments agencies are using to resist transparency, and identified 2-3 priority cases for strategic litigation to enforce the precedent.
Hidden automated decisions for social services
Organisation Name
Fundación Ciudadana Civio
Country/Jurisdiction
Spain
Amount Granted
EUR 25,000
Current Status
Ongoing
Image credit: Photo by Ali Shah Lakhani on Unsplash
Grant type
Pre-litigation Research Support
Description
In September 2025, Spain’s Supreme Court ruled in Civio’s favour after a seven-year legal battle, ordering the government to release the source code of BOSCO, an algorithm determining eligibility for social benefits. The ruling establishes that algorithmic transparency is essential to democratic governance and rejects blanket exemptions based on national security or intellectual property claims.
Civio is now preparing to file new access requests citing the Supreme Court judgment to challenge administrations that refuse compliance. They have identified priority targets from their transparency work, including algorithms used in the social security and public employment services.
By the end of this project, Civio will have mapped non-compliance with the BOSCO ruling across key sectors, documented the arguments agencies are using to resist transparency, and identified 2-3 priority cases for strategic litigation to enforce the precedent.
"Civio is now preparing to file new access requests citing the Supreme Court judgment to challenge administrations that refuse compliance"
Strategic Goals
To make algorithmic transparency the norm rather than the exception in Spanish public administration, ensuring that people affected by automated decisions can understand and challenge the systems that shape their access to welfare, employment, and public services.
To demonstrate that the BOSCO precedent is not just paper law but is actively enforceable, a signal that matters not only for Spain but for the broader European digital rights field, where courts and advocates in other jurisdictions are watching how algorithmic transparency rights are operationalised in practice.