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back to article Europe approves mass data transfer to US

The European Parliament has passed SWIFT II - the renewed treaty giving the United States access to financial information in order to investigate terrorism. The previous version of the treaty was rejected in February. Changes included a promise to phase out mass transfers of data. Instead Europol will work to filter US …

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  1. Christoph
    Big Brother

    Totally one-sided

    If this is so useful and harmless and cuddly, why do European firms not have similar access to the transactions made by their US rivals?

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    1. Dr. Mouse
      Reply Icon

      Shome mishtake, shurely

      Surely you mean European and US governments, not firms/businesses?

      I'm sure the US government would *never* pass this information on to their bosses^H^H^H^H^H^Hbusinesses so they could gain an advantage over their European rivals...

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  2. Disco-Legend-Zeke
    Pint

    So Now...

    ..when i want to run Trivial FTP i might get TFTP audit instead.

    We must do something about the acronym shortage!

    THINK OF THE LETTERS.

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  3. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    Reciprocate?

    An US spectator: professional paranoid disillusionist, on Radio 4 this week when asked "why can't the data go both directions?" said "European government is full of Al-Qaeda."

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    1. Pascal Monett Silver badge
      Reply Icon

      No, really ?

      If that was actually the case, methinks an Al-Quaida-dominated government would actually refuse to hand over financial details to an enemy state.

      So, by virtue of consequence, said professional moron is just spouting bollocks as usual. But of course, it's an American radio, so no intelligence is required.

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  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Which is it?

    "Europe approves mass data transfer to US"

    Or

    "Changes included a promise to phase out mass transfers of data."

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  5. JaitcH
    Thumb Down

    The EU ... privacy a joke

    Once again the EU bends over and surrenders to the U.S. of A. It is high time E.U. stood up to this world bully. If the U.S. wants to search data, the EU can do it on their behalf and hand over the screened data.

    But no, down with EU citizens privacy, and hand over everything and 'trust' the U.S. who even breaches their Constitution and spies on their citizens.

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  6. Sillyfellow
    FAIL

    promises promises

    can anyone recall when the last time any promise by 'authorities' was actually kept? i can't.

    if anyone thinks that said data won't be mined/searched using automated systems, then they're living in la la land.

    i think these witch.. erm, i mean terrorist hunters have been helping themselves to whatever data they like (that they possibly can), and trawling/cross-referencing it with their automated terrorist hunter super computer 'surveillance' systems. now they just trying to make as much of it as legal as possible.

    "no, we compiled this information by manually reading through all the data, specifically to find these items, honest!! look, here's some cctv footage of a poor bloke sifting through some data, see?" LOL

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  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Europe also gets the right to send an independent inspector to check US data processing facilities.

    mmm... sounds like another job for the Dark Lord Mandelson.

    Nice work if you can can get it.

    As he always says.

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  8. John Smith 19 Gold badge
    Thumb Down

    109 MEPs voted against it.

    That's a start.

    I wonder how many of them would not have if El Reg readers had not written to them?

    Thumbs down because this is a *bad* treaty and is *highly* asymmetrical.

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  9. b 3

    this will make no difference..

    shame on europe for caving in to naive and silly american DEMANDS (who do they think they are?)

    americans can't even deal with people flying planes into their buildings on their own soil, so what good are BILLLIONS of financial records going to do?

    unless they got army army of autistic people to go thru all that data, it will not stop any terrorist attacks..

    the REAL problem is american sending money to israel. THIS is the financial trail that needs to be shut! if zionists stop killing arabs, then maybe islamic extremists might stop trying to kill us.

    simple cause & effect. very simple.

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  10. Anonymous Coward
    Thumb Down

    Thieves and lying bastards

    This tells exactly what is the the worth of the privacy of the EU citizens to eurocrats: nothing!

    They'll give away everything you have just to get some perks to themselves.

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