U.S., EU move toward security pact

WASHINGTON, June 28 (UPI) -- The United States and the European Union are moving toward agreement on sharing personal information on individuals for law enforcement and security purposes.

The agreement would allow law enforcement and security agencies to obtain information -- including credit card transactions, travel histories and Internet browsing habits -- about most people in Europe and the United States, The New York Times reported Saturday.

Negotiators for the program have been meeting since February 2007, the newspaper said.

The pact would make clear that it is lawful for European governments and companies to transfer personal information to the United States, and vice versa. But there remain some sticking points, including whether European citizens should be able to sue the United States government over its handling of their personal data.

Paul Schwartz, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley, said such an accord could transform international privacy law.

"The reason it's a big deal is that it is going to lower the whole transaction cost for the U.S. government to get information from Europe," Schwartz said. "Most of the negotiations will already be completed. They will just be able to say, 'Look, we provide adequate protection, so you're required to turn it over.'"