The scanning device, made by Barringer Technologies in New Jersey, is so sensitive that it can ferret out a person who's merely touched money or other objects handled by a drug user, according to prison officials. That can be practically anyone, said Cook, and that's a big problem. A Canadian senator who says her country's pending information privacy act does not go far enough is proposing legislation that would enshrine privacy as a fundamental right. It's not just a question of electronic commerce. It goes far beyond that.
Privacy is essential to the principles of common trust that underlie our society.
New York Times - free registration required Europe and U.S. Reach Data Privacy Pact . The agreement was negotiated in response to a 1998 data-privacy law that gives European Union nations the right to halt certain information from being sent to countries that do not have adequate data protection. The United States does not have similar data protection guidelines. It relies mainly on a system in which businesses regulate themselves. If you have been following the issue and remember DoubleClick, RealAudio, and others you can see that self regulation has not exactly been working that well for the individual.