Passenger Name Records
(PNR) are transferred to US authorities by every commercial airline
flying from Europe to the US under a deal struck between the
Commission and the US in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in
the US in September 2001.
Data protection officials have expressed concern about the deal
because the US does not have as strict data protection measures as
the European Union.
The first deal was ruled illegal on a technicality by the
European Court of Justice and was opposed by the European
Parliament. An interim deal runs out on 31st July and will be
replaced by the just-approved agreement.
"The EU welcomes the new Agreement which will help to prevent
and combat terrorism and serious transnational crime, whilst
ensuring an adequate level of protection of passengers' personal
data in line with European standards on fundamental rights and
privacy," said a statement from the European Union's Presidency,
Council and Commission.
The deal will last for seven years and actually reduces the
amount of data transferred. It requires 19 pieces of data per
passenger to be handed over as opposed to the 34 contained in the
previous agreements.
Other parts of the deal could worry privacy activists, though.
The data can be kept for seven years in an active database. It can
then be kept for a further eight years in what the agreement calls
"dormant, non-operational status".
The data can also be used for non-terrorism related offences as
long as they take place on an international scale. "The data will
be used only for the purpose of preventing and combating terrorism
and related offences and other serious offences that are
transnational in nature," said the EU statement.
The PNR data includes some information classified as sensitive,
such as information that reveals the racial or ethnic origin,
political or religious views or health details of travellers.
Though the deal says that the US authorities must filter and delete
this material, it also says that it can be used in exceptional
cases.
The EU parliament, which has opposed the transfer of PNR data,
said that it had "concern" over the fact that "these data may be
used by the DHS in exceptional cases".
