US privacy group, the Electronic Privacy Information Centre (EPIC)
has filed a lawsuit seeking the release of information involving
the purchase of private information on individuals by US government
agencies.
EPIC announced that it filed the suit under the Freedom of
Information Act after several government agencies failed to provide
the group with information about contracts with private profiling
companies. The companies sell information on US citizens, including
credit information, property records, state motor vehicle records,
and marriage and divorce data, to these agencies, the group said.
According to EPIC attorney Chris Hoofnagle, the privacy group is
concerned that these private companies are furnishing the
government with information on individuals that may not be
regulated or monitored for accuracy.
EPIC named several agencies as recipients of the data, including
the FBI, the US Marshals Service, the Internal Revenue Service, and
the Immigration and Nationalisation Service.
"Through the mining of public records and the purchase of credit
reporting data, private sector companies are amassing troves of
personal information on citizens for the government," said
Hoofnagle, who filed the court challenge. "Serious questions exist
involving citizen access to profiles, their accuracy and the
potential for misuse of personal information."