No deal yet on EU-US air passenger data-sharing program News
No deal yet on EU-US air passenger data-sharing program

[JURIST] US and European representatives are set to continue talks next week on an airline passenger data-sharing deal after officials were unable to agree Friday on a replacement for a previous agreement [PDF text] struck down [JURIST report] by the European Court of Justice [official website] in May on privacy-related grounds. According to the court ruling, officials have until September 30 to make a new arrangement. EU Justice and Security Commissioner Franco Frattini [official profile] has asked the US to reserve any requests for greater access to passenger information for talks planned for 2007.

In August, US Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff [official profile] sharply criticized [JURIST report] European concerns over passenger data-sharing, stating that under the agreement information would not be inappropriately disclosed. The annulled agreement made in 2004 required European airlines to reveal the name, address, payment information, and itinerary details of passengers to US officials. The European Parliament [official website] challenged the deal [JURIST report], saying there were inadequate data security measures in the US and expressing concerns that the data would be used for purposes other than fighting terrorism and other serious crimes. Reuters has more.