U.S. Lifts FBI Criminal Database Checks
By TED BRIDIS Associated Press Writer
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."
In 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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On the Net: National Crime Information Center: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/ncic.htm
Electronic Privacy Information Center: http://www.epic.org/ 2003-03-25 14:14:50
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