While the United States, Canada and Australia insist on access to the passenger name records of all passengers entering their airspace, the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) – an independent supervisory authority devoted to protecting personal data and privacy and promoting good practice in the EU institutions and bodies – issued an opinion on the European Commission’s communication on the transfer of Passenger Name Record (PNR) data to third countries expressing major concerns as regards the necessity and legitimacy of some important aspects of the proposed schemes. He considers in particular that the proactive use of PNR data of all passengers for risk assessment purposes requires more explicit justification and safeguards.Source: EDPS press release of Oct. 19, 2010EDPS opinion available for download here>>.