For more information, please contact:
Gwen Osborne, director of public affairs, (312) 906-5251
ADVISORY TO PRODUCERS, COLUMNISTS AND ASSIGNMENT, LEGAL, PLANNING, BUSINESS, AND DAYBOOK EDITORS
CHICAGO--June 20, 2005--Chicago-Kent College of Law, the Stuart Graduate School
of Business and the Center for Financial Markets have experts available to discuss current issues.
To reach any of our experts, call Gwen Osborne, director
of public affairs, at (312) 906-5251. Copies of press releases and earlier advisories are available
on our Web site: http://www.kentlaw.edu/news/advisory.
Information about millions of passengers who flew on U.S. commercial airlines in June of 2004
was collected, bought and sold without the travelers’ knowledge and without congressional
permission. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) collected the data for use in its tests
of a terrorist screening program called Secure Flight. The program is designed to check all passenger
reservations against a watch list maintained by the Terrorist Screening Center and to shift responsibility
for screening passengers from the airlines to the TSA. It is estimated that the airlines gave the
government personal data on about 12 million passengers without their permission or knowledge. The
Office of Homeland Security is investigating whether the TSA violated federal privacy laws by expanding
Secure Flight testing beyond the scope of its official statements about how the data would be collected
and used. Dean Harold J. Krent is available for interviews.
Travelers and identity theft. ATMs and credit and debit cards have decreased the need for
vacationers to carry around large amounts of cash or travelers’ checks. However, the convenience
afforded by the technology has increased concern about identity theft. Professor Richard
Warner says travelers are often on unfamiliar ground so it is difficult for them to assess
the privacy, credit card fraud, and identity theft dangers. He adds there are things travelers can
do to protect themselves. “For example, use a credit card with a low limit; deal only with
reputable businesses; and minimize the personally identifying information divulged.” Professor
Warner is available for interviews about preventing identity theft. He has lectured on Internet
security at the second United Nations Economic Commission for Europe workshop in Geneva, Switzerland.
At the invitation of the FBI, he has spoken on global cybercrime before the Chicago Crime Commission.
“You have the right to remain silent...” if you are arrested in the United States.
But what rights do Americans traveling abroad have? Professor Bartram
S. Brown, co-director of Chicago-Kent’s Program in International and Comparative Law,
says “Although foreign governments can’t force you to testify, your silence could be
taken as evidence you have something to hide.” Professor Brown, an international human rights
expert, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the Board of Directors of
Amnesty International, USA.
Millions of foreign visitors come to the United States each year. Most require B-1/B-2 visitor
visas to enter the country legally. What is the process for obtaining visitors’ visas? What
changes have been made in the U.S. visa policy and procedures since the terrorist attacks in 2001?
Professor Matthew I. Bernstein, who practices and
teaches immigration and nationality law, is available for interviews.
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