tuluum's Diaryland Diary
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This and That
The Following Was Passed Last Week!
Justice Dept.: FBI database info no longer has to be accurate
WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Justice Department lifted a requirement Monday
that the FBI ensure the accuracy and timeliness of information about
criminals and crime victims before adding it to the country's most
comprehensive law enforcement database.� The system, run by the FBI's
National Crime Information Center, includes data about terrorists,
fugitives, warrants, people missing, gang members and stolen vehicles,
guns or boats.� Records are queried increasingly by the nation's law
enforcement agencies to help decide whether to monitor, detain or
arrest someone. The records are inaccessible to the public, and police
have been prosecuted in U.S. courts for misusing the system to find,
for example, personal information about girlfriends or former
spouses.� Officials said the change, which immediately drew criticism
from civil-liberties advocates, is necessary to ensure investigators
have access to information that can't be confirmed but could take on
new significance later, FBI spokesman Paul Bresson said.� The change
to the 1974 U.S. Privacy Act was disclosed with an announcement
published in the Federal Register.� The Privacy Act previously
required the FBI to ensure information was "accurate, relevant, timely
and complete" before it could be added to the system.
"It's a pretty big job to be accurate and complete," said Stewart
Baker, a Washington lawyer who specializes in technology and
surveillance issues. "On the other hand, these are potentially very
significant records for people, and if it's not accurate and complete,
it can mean trouble."� Critics urged Congress to review the change,
arguing that information in the computer files was especially
important because it can affect many aspects of a person's life.�
"This is information that has always been stigmatizing, the type of
data that can prevent someone from getting a job," said Marc Rotenberg
of the Washington-based Electronic Privacy Information Center. "When
you remove the accuracy obligations, you open the door to the use of
unreliable information."� Critics have noted complaints for years
about wrong information in the computer files that disrupted the lives
of innocent citizens, and the FBI has acknowledged problems. In one
case, a Phoenix resident was arrested for minor traffic violations
that had been quashed weeks earlier; in another, a civilian was
misidentified as a Navy deserter.
The system "is replete with inaccurate, untimely information, but
everybody does their best to keep it up to date," said Beryl Howell,
former general counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee. "That's a
goal we shouldn't just throw out."
�n the change, the Justice Department said earlier restrictions on
information "would limit the ability of trained investigators and
intelligence analysts to exercise their judgment in reporting on
investigations and impede the development of criminal intelligence
necessary for effective law enforcement."� It added that, because the
system collects its data from so many other organizations, "it is
administratively impossible to ensure compliance
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Current Clix Ranking: 12 | Previous Clix Ranking: 14
4:32 a.m. - Monday, Mar. 31, 2003
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