Uncle Sam Is Watching You

[thermidorthelobster]

I got this emailed from my bank:

The USA Government requires that all international transfers processed through the USA be provided with all the transfer details. As all SWIFT payments worldwide are processed through the USA, any SWIFT transfer requested by you will have the full transfer details disclosed to the USA Government. This also applies to TIPANET payments that are sent to the USA.

The Data Protection Authority in Belgium has ruled that this is a breach of the Data Protection Directive and so the sender of the money must be made aware of this and be given the option not to proceed with the transfer if they are not in agreement to this sharing.

What does this mean to me?

If you ask us to send a SWIFT payment to anywhere in the world or a TIPANET payment to the USA, you will need to agree to a declaration about how the transfer details could be used.

We'll need you to agree to the declaration each time you ask us to do a SWIFT payment to anywhere in the world or a TIPANET payment to the USA.  Unfortunately, we can't process your request in these circumstances without your agreement to the declaration.

TIPANET payments to other parts of the world and euroCHAPS are not affected by this change.

If you can't be bothered to read through, it basically says that from now on, any SWIFT transfer (bank-to-bank payments) will be disclosed to the US government so they can record and monitor it.

I can't be the only one who thinks the US government is getting just a little too powerful.  I don't have any financial transactions to hide, but I'm not very happy with a corrupt, greed-driven government which cheerfully invades other countries and imprisons other nations' citizens indefinitely at will with no legal process, having access to all my personal data, particularly when they have such an abysmal record of keeping it secure.

[DarrenG]

Excuse my ignorance but is an electronic UK bank to UK bank transfer affected by this?

[thermidorthelobster]

Generally it's used for country-to-country transfers.  I don't think it would generally be used for UK transfers but it may be possible.

Because it violates European data protection guidelines, it looks like the bank will now have to inform you that your data is going to the USA;  so if it affects you, they'll have to let you know before you agree to do the transfer.

[DarrenG]

Ah ok, still I have to agree with you regarding the US.  I have to travel there three times a year on business.  Were it not for that I wouldn't go as their draconian security measures, fingerprinting etc make you feel like a second class citizen.  We ought to try the same on them  :twisted:

[thermidorthelobster]

Well, that's the thing really.  Before, I could avoid handing my personal data to their government by not travelling there, but now it's going to end up there whether I like it or not, if I do a foreign bank transfer.

[landy4x4xfar]

so if you are A.O.L as your internet provider and you pay your council tax on line you go though the USA so the feds are watching you !   ](*,)  =D>  :^o