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CAPPS 2 Back to the Drawing Board
dagnabit writes "Just saw this over at MSNBC. Apparently Tom Ridge is revising CAPPS II due to the lawsuits and complaints from some Congresscritters As an alternative, the TSA is hoping frequent travellers will voluntarily give up their info..."
From this article at Wired:
"The Department of Homeland Security and the TSA feel very strongly we should not move forward on any program that in any way infringes on preserving our freedoms," Stone said. "That is first and foremost."
Which really means, "we thought that people would just go along with us because we snuck every other piece of bullshit legislation through without notice but we were wrong."
The system, as originally proposed, would require all passengers to provide extra information when booking a ticket -- information that airlines don't currently ask for, like addresses, phone numbers and dates of birth. The system would then check that information against databases of criminals and terrorists and assign each passenger a green, yellow or red score, according to perceived risk.
Civil-liberties groups from the left and right have gained powerful allies on Capitol Hill by arguing the system is both too invasive and ineffective.
Damn straight it's ineffective. The 9/11 terrorists were already in the country legally. What the hell good would this do? They were already flying planes. Would knowing their dates of birth and their addresses have helped? Nope.
Privacy firebrand Bill Scannell, whose DontSpyOnUs website has targeted companies such as JetBlue and Delta Airlines for working with the TSA, welcomed news of changes to CAPPS II, but argued the TSA did not go far enough.
"They should shut down this anti-democratic project and put it into a security system that works," Scannell said. "Instead of retooling, they should junk the entire system and improve physical security."
No way! Improve physical security? You mean like stop worrying about having an algorithm figure stuff out and do it manually? That's work, no way! Plus, we wouldn't be able to create a large database of information on airline passengers that could be easily accessed by other agencies in the on-going fight to end freedom, errr I mean terrorism.
They'll probably just pass a law to immunize from prosecution anyone who collects their dirty laundry for them.
It is good to see that the US government is finally seeing that people do not want their right to privacy infringed upon. If they want to do something like the CAPPSII program it should be instituted voluntarily. Several airlines are already doing this and a rigorous background check to ensure the passengers are safe when they run them through an express check in. If anything US citizens should have their constitutional rights protected and if THEY should decide to give them up it was their decision for convenience of skipping the line.
Aren't "frequent" flyers the ones we care the least about? I mean, if you are dead from hijacking a plane, you typically don't go on many more flights.
"Roger, this passenger has taken 2000 flights in the last 10 years...you know...I have this suspicion he is UP TO SOMETHING!"
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
From the article:
Airlines, some facing lawsuits, have been caught up in the controversy because they provided passenger information for use in testing the screening system.
Has no one there heard of 'dummy data'? Live data - particularly sensitive data - is a no-no in the testing environment. In many cases this is simply because the developers have absolutely no need-to-know; in other instances it is possible for live data to escape the test environment via generated reports, bug reports (e.g. SSNs ending in 4 cause $PROBLEM), etc.
I want to drag this out as long as possible. Bring me my protractor.
Last time i checked, suicide terra-ists don't plan to accumulate mileage.
To-do List: Receive telemarketing call during a tornado warning. Check.
This was "probably" scrapped simply because of the publicity it generated. There are "probably" easier ways to collect private information on the populate using pre-established methods that are less prone to public scrutiny (re: Carnivore).
There does seem to be a fallacy going around in intelligence circles that all that is required for good security is as much data as can possibly be obtained - which of course isn't the case. What is required is good and timely analysis of relevant good quality data. Airlines can't even book seats correctly 100% of the time - what are the chances that their data is going to be good quality 100% of the time?
remember one the first things that Bush said after 9/11?
We will not allow these terrorists to change our way of life.
heh. right.
I don't believe in voluntarily. I see a future in which people who did not "voluntarily" gave up information are harrassed and automatically marked suspect.
And not because Tom Ridge just woke up today morning a changed man either.
Its because they realized when senators and congressman and lobbyists on either side of the spectrum told them that snooping on influential people aint a good thing. Its not me or you they are worried about offending, its the people who they need, who can make or break them that they cater to.
But they would violate the rights of every non-american who step off or on their planes with out a second thought, because every immigrant is a potential terrorist, isnt it? Every tanned face will be pulled aside, strip searched, his financial / public and private records scoured and reviewed by people who could very well abuse that power.
Well..here's to Good Ol America.
Rapid Nirvana
First, i think that our invasive government has done enough to deprive us of any personal space. Tom Ridge, or anyone else doesn't need to know my pants size, yearly income, and how many pets i have if i'm getting on a plane. Security is one thing, but this is blatant excess, and abuse of authority. I'm glad we've at least got someone in congress with enough sense to say, "ok, so now when we get on planes, they'll anal probe us... Not so sure if i like that...". I just wish that good sense was around when the "Patriot" Act was written/passed. Well, change is not easy to swing these days, so i don't imagine we'll be seeing any less of this nonsense flying through congress (until we get some new faces in gov't....)
sigSEGV - doy!
I've travelled and been green lighted by CAPPS I.
So now we know that you are an ideal potential terrorist because you won't be hassled when you travel. Kewl!
Honestly, yeah.
I hope your governments will protect your privacy, but I don't care if mine does in order to protect me - I care if they break *my* privacy, but not that of a non-citizen. I assume most of the world is the same way - I certainly don't hear a whole lot of French people complaining about the well-documented practice of French airlines assisting French corporations in industrial espionage.
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Mod me down, you fucking twits. Go ahead. I dare you.
(I read with sigs off.)
If they collected it for all non US persons I wouldn't mind. Although don't they already collect all this info for non US persons. If not, maybe they should.
If that trips your Godwin's Law Filter, try one of the modern variations .There have been far, far more acts of domestic terrorism committed by Americans than by foreigners.