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Journalism of Courage
The federal government has been using its system of border checkpoints to greatly expand a database on travelers entering the country by collecting information on US citizens crossing by land, compiling data that will be stored for 15 years and may be used in criminal and intelligence investigations.
Officials say the Border Crossing Information system, disclosed late last month by the Department of Homeland Security DHS in a Federal Register notice, is part of a broader effort to guard against terrorist threats. It also reflects the growing number of government systems containing personal information on Americans that can be shared for a broad range of law enforcement and intelligence purposes.
While international air passenger data has long been captured this way, Customs and Border Protection agents only this year began to log the arrivals of all US citizens across land borders. But the advent of machine-readable identification documents, which the government now mandates for everyone crossing the border, has made gathering the information more feasible. By June, all travelers crossing land borders will need to present a machine-readable document, such as a driver8217;s license with a radio frequency identification chip or a passport.
The disclosure of the database is among a series of notices, officials say, to make Homeland Security8217;s data gathering more transparent. Critics say the moves exemplify efforts by the Bush administration in its final months to cement an unprecedented expansion of data gathering for national security and intelligence purposes.
8220;People expect to be checked when they enter the country and for the government to determine if they8217;re admissible or not,8221; said Greg Nojeim, senior counsel at the Center for Democracy 038; Technology. 8220;What they don8217;t expect is for the government to keep a record for 15 years of their comings into the country.8221;
