U.S. and Europe Near Agreement on Private Data
The United States and the European Union are nearing completion of an agreement allowing law enforcement and security agencies to obtain private information — like credit card transactions, travel histories and Internet browsing habits — about people on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. <snip> The pact would make clear that it is lawful for European governments and companies to transfer personal information to the United States, and vice versa. But the two sides are still at odds on several other matters, including whether European citizens should be able to sue the United States government over its handling of their personal data. <snip> “The reason it’s a big deal is that it is going to lower the whole transaction cost for the U.S. government to get information from Europe,” Mr. Schwartz said. “Most of the negotiations will already be completed. They will just be able to say, ‘Look, we provide adequate protection, so you’re required to turn it over.’” <snip> The Bush administration and the European Commission have not publicized their talks, but they referred to their progress in a little-noticed paragraph deep in a joint statement after a summit meeting between President Bush and European leaders in Slovenia this month. <snip> David Sobel, a senior counsel with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to data-privacy rights, said the administration’s depiction of the process of correcting mishandled data through agency procedures sounds “very rosy,” but the reality is that it is often impossible, even for American citizens, to win such a fight. <snip> Bush administration officials say they would like to resolve the problem before they leave office next January. If the agreement does not require legislative action, Mr. Bush could complete it with a signature. <snip> http://tinyurl.com/54pk7v ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ So the US government is going to be able to conduct warrantless internet surveillance on anyone in the EU. But, of course, our media have made no mention of this to the British people.
The United States and the European Union are nearing completion of an agreement allowing law enforcement and security agencies to obtain private information — like credit card transactions, travel histories and Internet browsing habits — about people on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. <snip> The pact would make clear that it is lawful for European governments and companies to transfer personal information to the United States, and vice versa. But the two sides are still at odds on several other matters, including whether European citizens should be able to sue the United States government over its handling of their personal data. <snip> “The reason it’s a big deal is that it is going to lower the whole transaction cost for the U.S. government to get information from Europe,” Mr. Schwartz said. “Most of the negotiations will already be completed. They will just be able to say, ‘Look, we provide adequate protection, so you’re required to turn it over.’” <snip> The Bush administration and the European Commission have not publicized their talks, but they referred to their progress in a little-noticed paragraph deep in a joint statement after a summit meeting between President Bush and European leaders in Slovenia this month. <snip> David Sobel, a senior counsel with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to data-privacy rights, said the administration’s depiction of the process of correcting mishandled data through agency procedures sounds “very rosy,” but the reality is that it is often impossible, even for American citizens, to win such a fight. <snip> Bush administration officials say they would like to resolve the problem before they leave office next January. If the agreement does not require legislative action, Mr. Bush could complete it with a signature. <snip> http://tinyurl.com/54pk7v ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ So the US government is going to be able to conduct warrantless internet surveillance on anyone in the EU. But, of course, our media have made no mention of this to the British people.