Fergie's Tech Blog

ACLU Slams Booz Allen in SWIFT Audit Report

Via UPI.

The ACLU is questioning the credibility of Booz Allen Hamilton to audit the U.S. SWIFT surveillance program.

Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc is a huge U.S. consulting and engineering corporation that is providing oversight for the SWIFT surveillance program. However, the American Civil Liberties Union and Privacy International, called its independence and credibility into question Tuesday when they published a memorandum prepared at the request of European regulators that documented Booz Allen's close ties to the U.S. government.

"It is bad enough that the administration is trying to hold out a private company as a substitute for genuine checks and balances on its surveillance activities," said Barry Steinhardt, director of the ACLU's Technology and Liberty Project. "But of all companies to perform audits on a secret surveillance program, it would be difficult to find one less objective and more intertwined with the U.S. government security establishment."

posted by Fergie @ 9/26/2006 04:10:00 PM