Out-Law / Your Daily Need-To-Know

A European Parliament research committee has approved a resolution requesting that the US government stops monitoring European citizens’ e-mail and telephone activities. The Committee has concluded that the suspected US surveillance system named “Echelon” does exist and that its operation is in breach of EU privacy laws.

According to Newsbytes, the resolution is expected to be presented before the full European Parliament in September. It demands that the US government negotiate an agreement with the EU to respect the privacy rights of individual citizens. In addition, it calls for support from the American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Privacy Information Center. Such support could help because resolutions of the EU are not binding on the US.

Although the US government has never admitted the existence of the Echelon system, the Committee clearly believes that a US spy network is in operation. It has urged EU citizens to protect their on-line privacy through the use of encryption software.

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