Eleven Privacy and Civil Liberties Groups Urge U.S. to Uphold Privacy Values in E.U. Negotiations

Eleven Privacy and Civil Liberties Groups Urge U.S.
to Uphold Privacy Values in E.U. Negotiations

U.S. groups call on E.U. allies to press for strong privacy protections

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Eleven American privacy and civil liberties groups asked the U.S.
government today to protect privacy and civil liberties and not to undermine those fundamental
rights in high-level negotiations that are underway with the European Union over the sharing of
personal information. In letters to President Obama and Senators John Kerry and Richard Lugar
– the chair and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee – the groups stressed
the significance of these negotiations for the privacy of individuals around the world, including
Americans. The groups include the American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Digital
Democracy, Consumer Federation of American, Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Liberty
Coalition.
“As information technology advances, it is crucial that we update our privacy laws in
order to maintain the privacy that our civilization has valued for centuries,” the groups wrote in
their letter to the president. “Much of the world – including countries in Asia and elsewhere –
will be looking to this agreement as a benchmark, so it will be a crucial determinant of evolving
global standard practices. It would be a betrayal of American values for our government to fail
to uphold privacy in this pact, and it would not serve the long-term interests of the people of the
United States.”

“We regard this as an issue of the highest priority,” the groups wrote.

Full Release and letters as pdfs: