European Data Protection Supervisor Peter Husinx has said that
proposals announced last month by the European Commission to
tighten border controls through the use of biometric identification
have failed to consider privacy implications closely
enough.
"It is crucial that the impact on the privacy rights of
individuals crossing the EU borders is adequately taken into
account," said Hustinx. "A lack of data protection safeguards would
not only mean that the individuals concerned might suffer unduly
from the proposed measures, but also that the measures will be less
effective, or even counter productive, by diminishing public trust
in government action."
EU commissioner for justice, freedom and security Franco
Frattini announced proposals for an electronic entry and exit
register for non-EU visitors, a border surveillance system and
improvements to existing border control arrangements. He proposed a
greater use of biometric technology to identify people.
Hustinx, though, said that Frattini's plans contained weaknesses
and were not based on sound evidence of the problems generated by
existing systems.
"Proposals for the creation of the entry-exit system and the
Electronic Travel Authorisation System rely heavily on the use of
biometrics," said a statement from the office of the EDPS.
"Although offering considerable advantages, the use of biometrics
presents inherent weaknesses (mainly in terms of accessibility and
accuracy) that will need to be properly addressed."
Hustinx's office also said that it was unclear that the scale of
the problem demanded systems which could threaten people's privacy
rights. "The immigration figures contained in the impact assessment
published by the Commission are based mainly on estimates or
samples, not on undisputable data. Infringements on the privacy of
individuals should be based on solid grounds, clearly demonstrating
their need and how extensive they should be," it said.
The EDPS also drew attention to the large number of proposals
recently made by Commission officials to deal with border
controls.
"The EDPS is concerned that far reaching proposals intended to
contribute to the monitoring of travellers (e.g. Second-generation
Schengen Information System (SIS II), Visa Information System
(VIS), review of Eurodac Regulation, Passenger Name Records, etc.)
are succeeding each other rapidly, making it difficult for
stakeholders to have a comprehensive overview," said the
statement.
The European Commission's focus on border controls has been
motivated by concerns about immigration and by worries about
security in the aftermath of several terrorist attacks this decade,
including those in New York and Madrid.
"We cannot have mafia or traffickers or terrorists using better
technology than our police," Frattini said at the most recent
announcements of new measures.
As well as creating new databases, the Commission is proposing
new uses for existing ones. It wants, for example, to use the
passenger name record database of information on airline travelers
to help it to predict who is likely to commit crimes.
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