FOIA Litigation: Personal Information Gathered on International Travelers

EFF has filed suit on behalf of a member of the European Parliament, demanding that the U.S. government release records about her "risk assessment" score and other information gathered about her during her international travels. The lawsuit came just days after the disclosure that the U.S. and the European Union may soon finalize an agreement authorizing the transatlantic exchange of large amounts of personal data.

During the ongoing and contentious debates between the U.S. and the EU over travelers' records and the privacy rights of EU citizens, the U.S. government has repeatedly claimed that any person can obtain her records through a FOIA request. To test those assurances, Sophia In 't Veld -- who represents the Netherlands in the European Parliament and serves on the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice, and Home Affairs -- filed FOIA requests with the Homeland Security, Justice, and State Departments, asking for any information about her that is included in the various U.S. programs and systems used to track international travelers. However, the agencies have failed to comply with the requests as required by federal law.