U.S. and Europeans Agree on Sharing of Airline Passenger Data

In a move that averted a trans-Atlantic showdown over privacy rights, the European Union has agreed to allow the US to collect records on all passengers flying from Europe to the US. The Bush administration claims these records are vital to protecting against terrorists entering the country, but European privacy advocates and some countries claimed the policy violated European privacy laws. In reaching the deal, the EU did extract some concessions from American negotiators – the US will only be allowed to store the information for three and a half years, less than the Bush Administration had sought. And the information shared will be limited in scope and useable only in cases of terrorism or international crime. – YaleGlobal