Thousands of passengers are already being scanned in a trial being carried out at two airports. However if the trials prove successful, ministers want the machines to replace most front line airport immigration officer over the next five years.
Once again the federal government is expanding its collection of data on innocent travelers, the American Civil Liberties Union said today, with the Department of Homeland Security creating dossiers of travelers who pass through U.S. border checkpoints, maintain these files for 15 years, and share this data broadly - including providing access to courts and attorneys in civil litigation like divorce proceedings.
'Our government is not supposed to collect information on the innocent activities and movements of its citizens just in case they later commit a crime,' said Barry Steinhardt, director of the ACLU's Technology and Liberty Program. 'This program illustrates why America needs more robust and across-the-board privacy laws.'
The DHS policy, which was reported by the Washington Post today, requires travelers at the border to present either a passport or both a drivers license and a birth certificate. The Customers and Border Protection agents scan information from travelers and store it on a database.
'The Customs and Border Protection Agency function is taking the approach that the border is a constitution-free zone,' said Tim Sparapani, Senior Legislative Counsel. 'Congress needs to step in and reassert the American values of limited intrusion on Americans' private lives.'
Sparapani continued, 'This is just the latest in a long list of Department of misguided DHS security policies, from trying to waive all laws at the border to build a US immigration wall, to redirecting the Automated Tracking System from assessing the risk of cargo to assessing the risk of travelers, to the most recent controversy over detaining laptops at airports. It is clear the next administration will need to drastically rethink all of these wrongheaded policies.'
Allegations of fraud have been levied against Priceline.com's European hotel reservation system - Booking.com - but the company has refused to comment according to this article.
This story begins five days ago, when Yiorgos (George) Yiannios, an employee of Booking.com, claimed that a number of reservations made through the Booking.com system were “fraudulent” and that he believed that the hotelier had made the reservations to advance its guest reviews. Without waiting for a reply from the hotelier, George deleted the hotel from Booking.com.
According to an email written by Yiannios, the basis of his claim was that several groups of reservations were made from the same IP address.
Despite believing that the reservations were “fraudulent” (to use Yiannios’ word), Booking.com charged the hotel the full commission and demanded payment of these ‘fraudulent commissions’ before they would restore the hotel’s access to Booking.com.
Ca. Atty. Gen. Brown Sues To Topple Online Pyramid Scheme
LOS ANGELES--California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today sued YourTravelBiz.com for operating a gigantic pyramid scheme that recruited tens of thousands of members with deceptive claims that members could earn huge sums of money through its online travel agencies.
“YourTravelBiz.com operates a gigantic pyramid scheme that is immensely profitable to a few individuals on top and a complete rip-off for most everyone else,” Attorney General Brown said. “Today’s lawsuit seeks to shut down the company’s unlawful operation before more people are exploited by the scam.”
YourTravelBiz.com and its affiliates operate an illegal pyramid scheme that only benefits members if and when they find enough new members to join the scam. Once enrolled, members who join the pyramid scheme earn compensation for each new person they enlist, regardless of whether they sell any travel. The company lures new members by offering huge income opportunities through online travel agencies yet the typical person actually makes nothing selling travel.
According to company records there were over 200,000 members in 2007 who typically pay more than $1,000 per year--$449.95 to set up an “online travel agency” with a monthly fee of $49.95. In 2007, only 38 percent of the company’s members made any travel commissions. For the minority of members who made any travel commission in 2007, the median income was $39.00--less than one month’s cost to keep the Website. There are at least 139,000 of the company’s travel Websites, all virtually identical, on the Internet.
YourTravelBiz’s extensive marketing materials include videos of people driving Porsches and other luxury cars, holding ten-thousand dollar checks, and claiming to be raking in millions of dollars in profits. The company advertises through its Website www.ytb.com, and at conventions, workshops and nationwide sales meetings which have been held in California locations such as Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Francisco and San Diego.
Brown charges the company, its affiliates, and the company’s founders J. Lloyd Tomer, J. Scott Tomer, J. Kim Sorensen and Andrew Cauthen with operating an “endless chain scheme,” an unlawful pyramid in which a person pays money for the chance to receive money by recruiting new members to join the pyramid. Brown also charges the company with unfair business practices and false advertising practices including:
For more information on pyramid schemes visit:
http://ag.ca.gov/consumers/
Any consumers who believe they have been bilked by YTB should send a written complaint with copies of any supporting documentation to:
Office of the Attorney General
Public Inquiry Unit, P.O. Box 944255
Sacramento, CA 94244-2550
American Airlines is about to pull its airline listings out of Kayak and is considering doing the same with Orbitz. If it does so, other airlines such as Continental and Northwest may follow suit.
Airlines don’t like the booking sites because they have to pay them a referral fee for every ticket they sell, as opposed to capturing the full fare when travelers book on their individual sites. Even though that only amounts to a few dollars per ticket, every dollar counts to the troubled airlines?especially now with fuel prices going sky-high and the consumer spending going down.
American Airlines has a particular beef with Kayak because it tends to show AA flights through its partnership with Orbitz instead of directly from American. That means American has to pay a double tax, once to Kayak and once to Orbitz. (The deal between Kayak and Orbitz, charges the competing CEO, was meant to drive up traffic numbers on Kayak as it was potentially seeking an IPO prior to raising $200 million instead last December).
The decision to sever ties with Kayak supposedly has already been made. The only question is whether Orbitz can salvage its relationship with the airline. This should strengthen competing travel sites, especially newer ones that link directly to the airlines like Mobissimo and Yapta.
The Atlanta-based carrier said Tuesday that the changes will apply to customers who purchase a ticket on or after Thursday for travel on or after Aug. 5.
Fee changes include an increase from $25 to $50 to check a second bag for domestic travel. Fees for specialty items that require special handling, such as surfboards or ski equipment, will increase on domestic and international flights, Delta said.
First Class, BusinessElite and Medallion customers will still be able to check up to three bags at no charge, the airline said.
Delta said that as fuel costs remain high, it believes revising its fee structure for excess bags and specialty items is essential to generate the necessary revenues to offset its higher costs.
Delta currently does not charge passengers for checking a first bag on domestic flights. It has said it is studying a decision by several other major carriers to impose that fee.
Delta customers checking bags on international flights can check a first and second bag at no charge.
Fees are for each extra bag, each way.
The fee for checking a third bag on a domestic flight will increase from $80 to $125, while the fee for checking a bag that is between 51 and 70 pounds (23 and 32 kilograms) on a domestic flight will rise from $80 to $90.
Delta warned on its website that if a customer has an extra piece of baggage that goes over the weight limit and the size limit, the passenger will be charged three times — once for the extra bag, once for going over the size limit and once for going over the weight limit.
The airline said it accepts up to 10 checked bags on Delta mainline flights and four checked bags on Delta Connection carriers.
It said a $175 charge per item applies to media representatives carrying camera, film, video tape, lighting, or sound equipment.
Delta announced April 14 that it will acquire Eagan, Minnesota-based Northwest Airlines Corp. in a stock-swap deal that would create the world's largest carrier in terms of traffic. The deal is subject to shareholder and regulatory approval.
PayPal has added Delta Air Lines to its long list of merchants that accept PayPal payments for online sales. Customers booking travel at delta.com now have the option to use their secure PayPal accounts when purchasing new airline tickets.
PayPal has added Delta Air Lines to its long list of merchants that accept PayPal payments for online sales. Customers booking travel at delta.com now have the option to use their secure PayPal accounts when purchasing new airline tickets.
“We are excited to add Delta Air Lines, one of the most established airlines in the world, to our growing stable of travel merchants,” said Tyler Hoffman, senior director of merchant services at PayPal. “Many of our customers already book their international and domestic travel with Delta’s award winning Web site, delta.com, and are excited to now have the option of using their PayPal accounts to do so.”
With more than 60 million active accounts, PayPal provides consumers with a safer, easier way to pay for items and services online. With a PayPal account, Delta customers can choose from several different payment options to fund transactions, including PayPal account balance, bank account, debit cards, and credit cards, all while keeping their financial information private and secure.
“PayPal provides additional payment flexibility that supports Delta’s commitment to providing today’s busy travelers with the ease, convenience, and value they demand. We already guarantee that customers will find our best published fares at delta.com, and PayPal brings them another great option to purchase tickets,” said Josh Weiss, Delta’s managing director responsible for delta.com and self-service products.
