Airlines could be selling passenger's private data to the government
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) may have purchased Americans' flight Data from Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), a Data broker owned by major U.S. Airlines, without their knowledge, according to internal CBP documents obtained by 404 Media.
The Data includes passengers' names, itineraries, and financial information, and CBP requires it to support law enforcement in tracking individuals of interest.
Senator Ron Wyden criticized the practice, stating that Airlines are selling sensitive information to the Government and that ARC has refused to answer oversight questions from Congress.
ARC's Travel Intelligence Program (TIP) provides the Data, which includes over a billion records updated daily, covering both past and future travel arrangements made through ARC-accredited travel agencies.
CBP stated it is committed to protecting individuals' privacy and follows a robust privacy policy, while ARC said TIP was established after 9/11 to provide Data to law enforcement for national security and criminal probes.
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