Chertoff calls for access to airline data

WASHINGTON, Aug. 29 (UPI) -- U.S. intelligence officials require more access to airline data to prevent terror strikes, Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff wrote Tuesday.

In a Washington Post op-ed article, Chertoff repeated his call for full access to Passenger Name Record data collected by airlines, which includes telephone numbers and credit card information.

"By comparing passenger name record data and intelligence gathered on known terrorists ... we can identify unknown threats for additional screening and enhance our ability to assess risk," Chertoff wrote. "But in the past few years, European privacy concerns have limited the ability of counter-terrorism officials to gain broad access to data of this sort."

Chertoff said the overall benefits overshadowed personal privacy concerns.

"Protecting personal privacy is a part of responding to the post-Sept. 11 world, but it should not reflexively block us from developing new screening tools," he wrote. "Indeed, more data sharing leads to more precisely targeted screening, which actually improves privacy by reducing questioning and searches of innocent travelers."