Politech archive on CAPPS: http://www.politechbot.com/cgi-bin/politech.cgi?name=capps --- [This is from Sen. Wyden's office --Declan] Just a heads-up - a Wyden amendment requiring a TSA report to Congress on the CAPPS II proposal has been accepted as part of the FAA Reauthorization bill which is still on the floor but should be approved by the Senate tonight. The amendment requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to report to Congress within 90 days on what impact the CAPPS II program will have on the privacy and civil liberties of United States citizens, including how individual information will be used and what safeguards will be implemented to protect the public’s rights. This amendment is identical to the amendment that already passed the Senate as part of the cargo security bill - original language can be found at http://wyden.senate.gov/leg_issues/amendments/capps_amendment.pdf The cargo security bill is still awaiting action in the House ; by attaching this provision to the FAA bill, Senator Wyden hopes to move it more quickly towards enactment. --- [also see below. --Declan] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: June 11, 2003 David Sobel 202-483-1140 x.105 EPIC SUES AGENCIES FOR INFO ON PASSENGER PROFILING SYSTEM; SEEKS DOCUMENTS ON CONTROVERSIAL "CAPPS II" PROGRAM WASHINGTON, DC -- The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) today asked a federal judge to order the disclosure of information concerning the development of a controversial airline passenger screening system. The lawsuit alleges that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Department of Defense (DOD) have failed to comply with the disclosure requirements of the Freedom of Information Act. EPIC's suit seeks the public release of documents concerning TSA's enhanced Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II), which would analyze large amounts of personal data and perform background checks on millions of airline passengers. CAPPS II has been the focus of public controversy since its inception as a result of the privacy issues it raises and the secrecy that has surrounded its development. In March, EPIC requested from TSA any privacy assessments of CAPPS II, and from DOD information concerning Pentagon involvement in the screening system. Neither agency has completed processing the requests, despite their agreement to "expedite" the process. DHS, as the parent department of TSA, is named as a defendant. It is believed that today's lawsuit is the first FOIA case to be filed against the new homeland security agency. While TSA has repeatedly issued public assurances that privacy rights of air passengers will be respected, it has not disclosed any internal documents assessing the potential privacy or civil liberties impact of CAPPS II. Nor has the Pentagon revealed the extent of its technical assistance to TSA, despite an e-mail message from a top TSA official to Admiral John Poindexter seeking details about the Total Information Awareness system under development at Poindexter's Information Awareness Office within DOD. EPIC obtained a copy of that message through an earlier lawsuit against TSA. "Millions of air passengers may soon have vast amounts of their personal data scrutinized by CAPPS II," said David Sobel, EPIC's General Counsel. "It is time for the government to be more forthcoming about this system and its likely impact on privacy rights." Sobel noted that EPIC successfully sought the disclosure of information about the Pentagon's Total Information Awareness system in an earlier case against DOD, and that the CAPPS II program appears to be closer to actual implementation. "CAPPS II is the government data-mining initiative that will likely affect the public in the near future, so the details need to disclosed and debated," he said. EPIC's lawsuit has been assigned to Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and is case number 03-CV-1255. The complaint is available at: http://www.epic.org/privacy/airtravel/capps2-suit.pdf A copy of the e-mail exchange between TSA and Adm. John Poindexter is available at: http://www.epic.org/privacy/profiling/tia/meetingscans.html - 30 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ Like Politech? Make a donation here: http://www.politechbot.com/donate/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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