June 28, 2008
U.S. and Europe Near Agreement on Private Data
By CHARLIE SAVAGE

WASHINGTON — The United States and the European Union are nearing
completion of an agreement allowing law enforcement and security
agencies to obtain private information — like credit card transactions,
travel histories and Internet browsing habits — about people on the
other side of the Atlantic Ocean.

The potential agreement, as outlined in an internal report obtained by
The New York Times, would represent a diplomatic breakthrough for
American counterterrorism officials, who have clashed with the European
Union over demands for personal data. Europe generally has more
stringent laws restricting how governments and businesses can collect
and transfer such information.

Negotiators, who have been meeting since February 2007, have largely
agreed on draft language for 12 major issues central to a “binding
international agreement,” the report said. The pact would make clear
that it is lawful for European governments and companies to transfer
personal information to the United States, and vice versa.

If the agreement does not require legislative action...

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