This is the landmark ruling that sets a new standard for algorithmic transparency in Spain
A court decision that reshapes how public algorithms must be governed — and how citizens can hold them accountable.
We’re publishing the full English translation of a judgment that marks a turning point for digital rights and public oversight. After seven years of appeals, denials, and legal dead ends, Spain’s Supreme Court has ordered the Government to release the source code of BOSCO, the algorithm that decides who is granted —and who is denied— an energy poverty voucher.
This ruling goes far beyond one programme. The Court states that any public algorithm that affects people’s rights must be transparent, and that neither national security nor intellectual property can be invoked as automatic shields for secrecy. Transparency, the judges write, is not a technical detail but a constitutional right inseparable from democratic accountability.
The judgment also dismantles years of flawed arguments used to block access and establishes the need for meaningful scrutiny of automated decision-making in what it calls a “digital democracy.”
You can download the full translated ruling here.
Its translation into English was funded by the European Artificial Inteligence & Society Fund. Our thanks for making this possible.