The challenge of preventing and responding to the new
security threats is very different from the one we, as a
nation, faced in the Cold War. Today, the private sector is
on the frontline of the homeland security effort: Its members
are holders of information that may prove crucial to
thwarting terrorist attacks; stewards of critical infrastructure
that must be protected and dangerous materials that
could be used to do harm; and important actors in
responding to attacks. As we said in our first Task Force
report, private sector information is essential to counterterrorism,
and government agencies should have timely, needed access to that information, pursuant to guidelines
that give confidence that the information will be used in
a responsible way.
Government agencies already have access to certain kinds of
privately held information. However, the rules governing
access to it have evolved haphazardly and are confusing and
sometimes contradictory. Moreover, the rules and practices
fail to take into account the dramatic evolution of information
technologies that can substantially increase the value of
such data in helping to prevent acts of terror. The time has
come for a fresh look at how the government can make the
most effective use of the information that it truly needs to
meet emerging security challenges.
At the same time, if our government is to sustain public
support for its efforts, it must demonstrate that the information
it seeks to acquire is genuinely important to the security mission, and that it is obtained and used in a way that minimizes any negative impact on privacy and civil liberties. Current privacy protection laws and procedures
are not in synch with the challenges and possibilities that
rapidly advancing technologies are bringing; there are few
reliable processes to ensure that information is accurate
and up-to-date; and some of the proposed information-related
programs seem to offer little added value and may impose substantial costs on industry. Plus, there are inadequate
mechanisms of oversight and accountability to prevent unauthorized access to, and use of, information.
This paper was published as part of the Task Force's second report, "Creating a Trusted Network for Homeland Security." The first report, "Protecting America's Freedom in the Information Age," was published October 2002.