  Algorithmic decision systems have frequently been labelled as "biased",
"racist", "sexist", or "unfair" by numerous media outlets, organisations, and
researchers. There is an ongoing debate whether such assessments are justified
and whether citizens and policymakers should be concerned. These and other
related matters have recently become a hot topic in the context of biometric
technologies, which are ubiquitous in personal, commercial, and governmental
applications. Biometrics represent an essential component of many surveillance,
access control, and operational identity management systems, thus directly or
indirectly affecting billions of people all around the world. In order to
provide a forum for experts in the field, the European Association for
Biometrics organised an event series with "demographic fairness in biometric
systems" as an overarching theme. The events featured presentations by
international experts from academic, industry, and governmental organisations
and facilitated interactions and discussions between the experts and the
audience. Further consultation of experts was undertaken by means of a
questionnaire. This work summarises opinions of experts and findings of said
events on the topic of demographic fairness in biometric systems including
several important aspects such as the developments of evaluation metrics and
standards as well as related issues, e.g. the need for transparency and
explainability in biometric systems or legal and ethical issues.
