EPIC Calls on House to Protect Privacy at U.S. Seaports
EPIC submitted a statement to the House Homeland Security Committee in advance of a hearing on "Examining Physical Security and Cybersecurity at Our Nation's Ports." The Committee recently reported favorably "The Border Security for America Act," which would dramatically expand U.S. border surveillance, including a biometric exit data system at U.S. seaports. EPIC has expertise regarding maritime surveillance. EPIC pursued a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security concerning the Nationwide Automatic Identification System, a system designed with the support the U.S. Coast Guard to promote boating safety that the DHS has transformed into a surveillance surveillance for monitoring vessels, including recreational vessels operated by U.S. citizens. In the letter to the House Committee, EPIC warned that "many of the techniques that are proposed to enhance border surveillance have direct implications for the privacy of American citizens."