Papers, Please!

The Identity Project

Category Archives: Freedom To Travel

Nov 21 2006

EFF sues for details of US/EU flyer records hemorrhage

The Electronic Frontier Foundation‘s FLAG project has sued DHS after it stonewalled their FOIA request for details on the two year old US/EU agreement to violate the privacy of European and American travelers. Here’s EFF’s press release and their legal complaint. The agreement gives the US Government carte blanche to troll through every European airline’s reservation system. They can look at any passenger’s information that they desire, at any time, with minimal controls over what can be done with the information extracted. This violates EU privacy law.

Oct 12 2006

“Mother, may I?”

Should you have to ask for permission from the government before you are allowed to get on a plane or cruise ship?

The Department of Homeland Security has proposed that airlines and cruise ships be required to get individual permission (“clearance”) from the DHS for each individual passenger on all flights to, from, or via the U.S. Unless the answer is “Yes” — if the answer is “no” or “maybe”, or if the DHS doesn’t answer at all — the airline wouldn’t be allowed to give you a boarding pass, or let you or your luggage on the plane or ship.

The Identity Project, along with the World Privacy Forum and John Gilmore, has filed comments with the DHS objecting to this proposal as a violation of international human rights, First Amendment rights, and privacy and government accountability laws.

This is the third of three identification-related “rulemakings” in the last month and a half in which the DHS has proposed to restrict the right to travel. IDP has filed formal objections to each of these proposals:

Mar 05 2006

Exercise Your Right To Fly Anonymously

The Identity Project needs your help in an ongoing investigation into the right to fly without ID.

The 9th Circuit stated in its Gilmore decision that when traveling by domestic commercial air, citizens had a choice: they could either show ID or submit to additional screening.

Please try doing some or all of your air travel by declining to show ID and report back about what happens to you.

Be a Freedom Flyer: the Constitutional rights you protect and defend are your own.

Feb 13 2006

Alaska Air’s Valentine’s Day Gift to the Surveillance State

Alaska Airlines today sent out the following Valentine’s Day greeting to all their loyal customers:

A little heads-up for all international travelers: To ensure aviation safety and security, Alaska Airlines is required to adhere to the Advance Passenger Information System (APIS), which mandates the collection of specific information from every passenger traveling to the U.S. from other countries. Travelers must supply APIS information at time of check-in or they will be prevented from traveling. Beginning February 21, 2006, alaskaair.com will feature updated information pages for international travelers, as well as a page where you can provide your information ahead of time.

So when you fly to Mexico on Alaska, you win a free trip into a Homeland Security database (pretzels not included).