Live data from Hacker News

US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

digit.so36.net

151–160 of 432 posts

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would we have to give two damns about American demands, I don't see that having any chance.

I get the sense you do not quite understand how much essentially all of Europe is a vassal state of the group of people that also has a stranglehold on America.

Life in Europe looks pretty nice from the outside at least. Could America sign up for self-vassalage or something?

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They checked outbound as well at that time, not sure if that is still the case.

AFAIK that only happens with planes and boats, where the transporting company is on the hook for sending you back if the border at the destination turns you away. I've driven into Canada numerous times and never encountered any sort of American checkpoint before the Canadian border. But when I get onto a ferry in America that goes to Canada, they do check my passport first before I get onto the ferry.

This was the bridge into Canada at the Sault Ste. Marie checkpoint. The traffic was backed up for a very long stretch and it is the only time I've been stopped there outbound from the USA so maybe they were looking for something specific, still, it really upset my plans at the time, and I was already pretty tired from the trip and only about 45 minutes driving time from home.

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#153
post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be honest I am already avoiding to travel to the US as much as I can. No appetite for hours of queues at security and passport controls. Their airports are worst than many third world countries.

Visitor queue are typically miniscule if you are flying in from Europe

It varies massively by airport and by time of year, and you just go into “Non U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents” (there’s almost never a “Europe” line).

On airports, there are a set of U.S. airports like Los Angeles which always seem to have long queues, and a few where CBP is more prone to asking 20 questions of everyone.

On times of year, visiting cities when a big convention is happening can be much slower, as can traveling near a holiday like Thanksgiving.

I’ve witnessed and stood in a 3 hour queue at San Francisco and that was my #1 motivator to go get Global Entry sorted.

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#154
post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The whole EU economy depends on the USD-EUR liquidity swap line between the two central banks. Basically EU has to do whatever US wants.

How?

It's quite nicely explained on the official EU site (much better than how I understand):

https://www.ecb.europa.eu/mopo/implement/liquidity_lines/htm...

Without a swap line banks couldn't just treat EUR as USD whenever an entity needs to keep USD for import/export purposes.

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#155
post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Obtain perhaps, but identify no. Identification requires a database of samples to match against. Way more FP and FI databases than DNA databases, so not much to use as a gallery for identification..

> Obtain perhaps, but identify no. Identification requires a database of samples to match against. Those databases already exists (just look at the MyHeritage, FamilyTreeDNA, 23andMe etc companies). Furthermore, DNA has the advantage, that you can find someone via relatives. The person to be identified doesn't have to be in the database. It's sufficient if his brother or father is in that db. Afaik this is not the ca…

> Afaik this is not the case for fingerprints.

Generally correct, but it's interesting that identical twins have similar but distinct fingerprints. The exact prints are different, but they tend to have the same broader patterns of print.

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#156

Reading through the slides, it appears that what has been discussed is sharing signature and fingerprints for travel into the USA. There is a lot of weasel words, but it's probably worth nothing that the USA currently collects this information for foreign nationals coming into the USA (as the EU does for Americans traveling into the EU). This is being done in the context of a DB query as part of the e VISA applicatio…

I'm not sure that hyperbole is possible when you're discussing the necessity of having worldwide biometric "terrorist" lists that countries like Saudi Arabia would participate in. ----- edit: How would you code "terrorism through public demonstrations of driving while female" or "terrorism through being Yemen?" "Terrorism though applying for a marriage license after being mildly critical in the WaPo."

In Saudi Arabia atheists are terrorists. And they also have the death penalty for terrorism.

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#157

Are there any folks here to whom it is starting to dawn what is really going on here; a transatlantic prison planet where you can do nothing without your prison wardens, formerly known as politicians, bureaucrats, and generally awful people knowing more about you than you do and being able to terrorize and torment you if you oppose or inconvenience them?

I'm working through the stages of grief.

Re: US Government demands direct police access to European biometric data [pdf]

#160
post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They don’t spy on their own citizens They sure do; whatever gave you the impression they don’t?

Their mandate doesnt allow it https://www.aclu.org/other/nsa-spying-americans-illegal

Yeah, like the siblings I can’t be sure whether you’re joking or not.

In the off chance that you’re not, remember that Gitmo exists so they can do things that their mandates wouldn’t allow.

Post reply on HN