American Civil Liberties Union

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Privacy Technology : General : Press Releases

South Carolina Stands Firm Against DHS and Real ID (03/31/2008)
WASHINGTON - The governor of South Carolina today issued a blistering critique of the Department of Homeland Security's national identification program, Real ID. The state is facing a DHS-imposed deadline to request that their drivers' licenses and ID cards continue to be accepted for federal purposes. South Carolina was one of seven states that passed legislation prohibiting participation in the Real ID program, yet five of those states have already been granted waivers on the statutory deadline.

With Thousands of Cameras in the Congestion Pricing Plan, City Must Do More to Protect New Yorkers' Personal Privacy (03/24/2008)
The New York Civil Liberties Union today asked the city to consider the impact the proposed congestion pricing plan would have on New Yorkers’ privacy.

Passport Security Breaches Show Privacy Vulnerabilities (03/21/2008)

Montana and DHS Go to Eye-to-Eye, and DHS Blinks (03/21/2008)
WASHINGTON – In the strongest confirmation yet that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is caving in to state resistance on the Real ID Act, DHS today agreed not to enforce the requirements of the Real ID Act on the state of Montana, even though the state has passed a law prohibiting implementation. To date, nearly a dozen states have received extensions without committing to comply with the act – including three states in which the legislatures have actually passed statutes barring compliance. In other cases, DHS has granted extensions despite explicit statements disclaiming any intention of complying.

MCLU Applauds Senators Collins and Snowe for Defending Mainers’ Right to Fly (03/13/2008)
PORTLAND – The Maine Civil Liberties Union today praised Maine’s two Senators for calling on the Department of Homeland Security to scrap its May deadline for compliance with the controversial REAL ID program.

Three National Privacy Experts to Address Arizona Legislators on Privacy Issues Related to REAL ID, RFID Tags (03/12/2008)
PHOENIX – Three nationally-recognized privacy experts will be in Phoenix on Thursday, March 13 to speak to legislators and members of the public about the privacy implications of everything from REAL ID and national identity cards to radio frequency identification (RFID) technology and enhanced driver’s licenses.

Stunning New Report on Domestic NSA Dragnet Spying Confirms ACLU Surveillance Warnings (03/12/2008)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union responded today to a stunning new report that the NSA has effectively revived the Orwellian "Total Information Awareness" domestic-spying program that was banned by Congress in 2003. In response, the ACLU said that it was filing a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for more information about the spying. And, the group announced that it was moving its "Surveillance Clock" one minute closer to midnight.

ACLU Calls for True Oversight of DHS Failures (03/05/2008)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today responded to the House Judiciary Committee’s questioning of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff with a question of its own: After five years of mistakes, why is an agency that consistently overlooks civil liberties and privacy concerns be still allowed to violate the law?

U.S. Terror List Now Exceeds 900,000 Names (02/27/2008)
WASHINGTON – With the size of U.S. terrorist watch lists growing to absurd proportions – now in excess of 900,000 names – the American Civil Liberties Union today unveiled a new “ACLU Watch List Counter” intended to make vivid just how bloated and dysfunctional those lists have become.

Funding for Invasive Real ID Cons States in Exchange for Their Privacy (02/06/2008)
Washington, DC – After releasing regulations last month that failed to fix the manifold privacy and civil liberties violations of the Real ID Act, the federal government has left state governments to shoulder most of the cost of the onerous, invasive national ID program. The President’s budget proposal requests only $110 million in federal grant money toward the states for Real ID implementation, and even that money, if actually appropriated by Congress, will be split among Real ID and other programs.

NYPD Releases Stop-and-Frisk Database in Face of NYCLU Lawsuit (01/24/2008)
NEW YORK – The New York City Police Department has secretly released its electronic database detailing police stops of hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers to a Midwestern university in the face of a New York Civil Liberties Union lawsuit seeking to make that information public.

ACLU: DHS Border Crossing Plans Show Mix of Arrogance and Incompetence (01/22/2008)
WASHINGTON – Plans by the Department of Homeland Security to impose new identity-document requirements at the Canadian border in defiance of Congress are the latest example of the department’s characteristic combination of arrogance and incompetence, the American Civil Liberties Union said today.

ACLU Issues REAL ID Scorecard, Urges Lawmakers to Pass Legislation Rejecting REAL ID (01/17/2008)
PHOENIX – In light of the recent release of the Department of Homeland Security regulations for the Real ID Act, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona today issued a renewed call to Governor Napolitano and the Arizona Legislature to work together to reject the REAL ID Act, which would federalize state driver’s licenses and create the nation’s first-ever de facto national identity card system.

Congestion Pricing Raises Privacy Concerns (01/16/2008)
January 16, 2007 -- The New York Civil Liberties Union has asked the commission charged with reviewing Mayor Bloomberg’s congestion pricing proposal to assure any plan it recommends will seek to protect New Yorkers’ privacy rights.

ACLU Of Maryland Blasts New Real ID Regulations (01/15/2008)
ANNAPOLIS, MD – The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland today is condemning the final regulations for the federal REAL ID Act issued by the Department of Homeland Security on Friday. The new regulations delay implementation of the law until 2017, but the Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) has indicated it is intent to move forward in Maryland with Real ID. That is why the ACLU is calling on Maryland to join 17 other states in rejecting Real ID implementation.

NYCLU Analysis: Real ID Regulations Jeopardize Rights, Liberties And State Budget (01/15/2008)
NEW YORK-Final federal regulations for implementing the Real ID Act only intensify concerns that the law would gravely threaten privacy rights by establishing a national identification system, according to an analysis by the New York Civil Liberties Union.

ACLU Report: Government Must Abandon Misguided Approach to Pandemic Preparedness (01/14/2008)
WASHINGTON – As fears of a flu pandemic have grown, the Bush administration has pursued a misguided approach to pandemic preparation that relies on a law enforcement/national security approach, rather than a public health approach to the problem, and which exposes Americans to unnecessary risk. That is the finding of an expert report being released today by the American Civil Liberties Union at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.

MCLU Blasts New REAL ID Regulations (01/11/2008)
Portland – The Maine Civil Liberties Union condemns the final regulations for the REAL ID Act, issued by the Department of Homeland Security today. The REAL ID Act passed in 2005. In January of 2007, the Maine State Legislature was the first in the country to reject the REAL ID, passing a resolution calling for its repeal. An Act To Prohibit Maine from Participating in a National Identification Card System was subsequently passed by the legislature and signed into law by Governor John Baldacci. Sixteen other states have followed Maine’s lead in rejecting the REAL ID.*

New “Fusion Centers” Must Be Open, Carefully Monitored and Subject to Restraints, ACLU Says In New Report (12/12/2007)
WASHINGTON – New institutions now emerging in American life – “fusion centers” – are raising many questions about privacy and government openness and must be carefully bounded and monitored to ensure that they remain a legitimate and effective law enforcement tool, according to a new report released today by the American Civil Liberties Union.

ACLU Says Enhanced Driver’s Licenses Are Insecure, Fail to Protect Personal Information (12/12/2007)
PHOENIX -- Citing serious privacy concerns with the state’s proposal to “enhance” Arizona driver’s licenses with tiny computer chips that collect personal information, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona today urged state lawmakers to protect Arizona residents from identity fraud and reject efforts to introduce new driver’s licenses with controversial radio frequency identification technology.

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