EU Agrees to Share Airline Passenger Data with US

securitas writes "The European Union has agreed to provide the US government with detailed airline passenger data. The agreement allows the collection of 34 pieces of data per person and limits storage of the data to three and a half years. 'The United States originally wanted to collect 60 pieces of data and keep it for 50 years.' Previously, the EU had objected to the plan because it violated EU privacy legislation, the data-protection directive. The plan is similar to the CAPPS II passenger profiling system. The data may be used for 'secondary purposes' other than anti-terrorism measures if requested from US Customs by other law enforcement agencies."

Comments

I've canceled by US trips

[ciaran_o_riordan]

I had planned to attend the FSF annual associate members meeting in Boston in March, but have scrapped that plan due to this legislation. I'll use the money to go to the Libre Software Meeting in France, and FOSDEM in Belgium instead. People shouldn't put up with this crap.

What's new?

[Tune]

EU legislation is one thing, but most major European airlines have freely shared ALL passenger info with the US authorities for almost two years, despite questions and objections by various political bodies. The message is clear: If you care about liberty, privacy and those sort of things and you're not an American, than just stay out. Thanks to the 9/11 attacks, the Bush administration now has world-wide carte blance to invade anyone's privacy.
</Rant>

--
Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable -- John F. Kennedy

Re:What's new?

[fuzzybunny]

Good point you make. Unfortunately, that's not entirely an option for a lot of us.

Bush aside (a lot of this horseshit's been going on for years before he entered the picture--think "war on drugs", "encryption export controls", etc.) there's a long-running problem a lot of Europeans have with the dichotomy of "US the beacon of liberty and progress" and US home of John Ashcroft & his ilk."

I'm a US-Swiss dual citizen living in Europe--I've seriously considered giving up my US passport due to ideological concerns. I haven't done so, as I have a lot of close family in the US, whom I like to see, and stand to inherit some property. Sort of a conundrum, no?

Likewise, it's not much of a choice if you live in a country which has something like biometric identification in its passports mandated by the US departmen of . What if I never wanted to enter the US, but maybe decided to head over to France for the weekend? Tough cookies, please place your retina here.

Re:Sheesh

[the Man in Black]

The right to privacy would be a double-edged sword. I can see corporations claiming right to privacy on business data and the like. I don't think that corporations should be viewed as "citizens" under the law anyway, but that's me.

I still, however, maintain that a constitutionally guaranteed right to individual privacy (encompassing medical information, all activities in or around a home or residence, purchases and other financial information, and library rentals) would do more good, especially under our current neo-Draconian administration, with it's flagrant disregard for the individual.

Sorry, that almost turned into a political rant. *goes to get more coffee*

Re:Source of all that data?

[fuzzybunny]

I've read a few articles expounding on this; the point wasn't _just_ that it violates a principle of privacy and sovereignty, but also puts forward the question, "do you realize exactly what kind of data airlines collect on you?"

Think about it. Dietary habits, travel patterns. Possibly medical history. What else? What do you think ticket agents are writing on those screens you can't see during checkin, when they're frantically typing away? I don't know, do you? The consensus appeared to be that airlines keep some pretty quirky stuff on file about you, including the occasional nasty comment.

What kind of information do you give away when signing up for frequent flyer programs, including that airline miles credit card? Bang, there go your spending habits.

Not sure I'm comfortable with Uncle Sam having that as a matter of routine.

well

[sofar]

Do we European get the US data too then ??????

Greetings from Airstrip One

[cattlepr0d]

We have this, too.

The US and UK governments: bringing freedom and democracy to the world.

My last flight was my last flight

[bitty]

It was our honeymoon to Hawaii, so there wasn't much choice there. We drive everywhere now, the hassle and total invasion of our privacy just isn't worth it. In one airport, they even had me put one foot on this "detector", that for all I know did absolutely nothing. It was just a box with an opaque piece of white plexiglass with the outline of a foot that said "place foot here". No wires coming out of it at all, and it didn't appear to be plugged in. The security guy just watched me do it and said thank you. My wife and I were both pulled aside and searched twice each way by very rude people that seemed more interested in our undergarments than actually looking for anything dangerous.

Screw 'em. I'll spend my money elsewhere.