DHS Promises to Share More and More Passenger Data

[drwong]

By Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 23, 2006; Page A05

The United States is seeking to expand a post-Sept. 11 data-sharing agreement with the European Union to enable the Department of Homeland Security to retain airline passenger data longer than a few years and to share the data more freely with law enforcement and intelligence agencies.

The agreement, which grew out of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001 and took effect in March 2004, obliges all foreign carriers flying from Europe to the United States to share airline passenger data with Customs and Border Protection agents. The arrangement has raised concerns among privacy advocates and politicians in Europe over sovereignty and privacy issues.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesman, Jarrod Agen, said yesterday that the information, which includes passengers' names, addresses, credit card details, travel itineraries, and hotel and rental car information, was "essential . . . to identify potential terrorists that we don't already have on our watchlist." The information is part of a database called the Passenger Name Record.

* * *

U.S. officials also initially wanted access to all 60 fields of data in passenger-reservation databases, such as religious identification and dietary preference. But E.U. officials objected, and a compromise of 34 fields was reached.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6082201304.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/22/AR2006082201304.html)

[Ned]

I love the statement, "The arrangement has raised concerns among privacy advocates and politicians in Europe over sovereignty and privacy issues." By golly, the arrangement shouldn't just raise concerns, it should raise a huge red flag.

This overkill intelligence gathering reminds me of the outrageous statements by the Justice Department about wiretaps. Even though they can get the court order for the wiretaps after the fact, for terrorism investigation wiretaps, although there is a time limit of several days, they want to be unfettered, and not be required to get any court orders. It seems as though they want to be the administration, legislature and court system all rolled into one, a very dangerous state of affairs for the country.

[REDJIM]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(drwong @ Aug 23 2006, 12:34 PM) 35276</div>
By Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 23, 2006; Page A05

The United States is seeking to expand a post-Sept. 11 data-sharing agreement with the European Union to enable the Department of Homeland Security to retain airline passenger data longer than a few years and to share the data more freely with law enforcement and intelligence agencies.

The agreement, which grew out of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001 and took effect in March 2004, obliges all foreign carriers flying from Europe to the United States to share airline passenger data with Customs and Border Protection agents. The arrangement has raised concerns among privacy advocates and politicians in Europe over sovereignty and privacy issues.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesman, Jarrod Agen, said yesterday that the information, which includes passengers' names, addresses, credit card details, travel itineraries, and hotel and rental car information, was "essential . . . to identify potential terrorists that we don't already have on our watchlist." The information is part of a database called the Passenger Name Record.

* * *

U.S. officials also initially wanted access to all 60 fields of data in passenger-reservation databases, such as religious identification and dietary preference. But E.U. officials objected, and a compromise of 34 fields was reached.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6082201304.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/22/AR2006082201304.html)
[/b]

In my released info, I want to be identified as: "a cross-dressing, guitar playing, drug-addled, George Dickel-swilling, wastrel. Not exactly accurate, but interesting for any government wanting to investigate me.

[Ned]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(REDJIM @ Aug 23 2006, 05:30 PM) 35318</div>
In my released info, I want to be identified as: "a cross-dressing, guitar playing, drug-addled, George Dickel-swilling, wastrel. Not exactly accurate, but interesting for any government wanting to investigate me.
[/b]
I never heard of "George Dickel," but I understand what it must be, and your identification idea is wonderful. Is George Dickel a Michigan thing?

[REDJIM]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ned @ Aug 23 2006, 05:34 PM) 35320</div>
I never heard of "George Dickel," but I understand what it must be, and your identification idea is wonderful. Is George Dickel a Michigan thing?
[/b]

Nope, Ned, It's a Tennessee thang. The Dickel distillery is nearby the Jack Daniels distillery. The two of them were contemporaries back in the mists of time. The whiskeys are vastly different from each other.

[Ned]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(REDJIM @ Aug 24 2006, 04:11 AM) 35366</div>
Nope, Ned, It's a Tennessee thang. The Dickel distillery is nearby the Jack Daniels distillery. The two of them were contemporaries back in the mists of time. The whiskeys are vastly different from each other.
[/b]
Thanks. I toured a distillery in Scotland a while back. What they do there to get Scotch was absolutely amazing. I assume it's basically the same in Tennessee.