“EPIC testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee [hearing: Passport Files: Privacy Protection Needed For All Americans], urging new protections for passport information privacy. The hearing, held at a time of increased information collection and dissemination by the government, addressed an Inspector General report [Review of Controls and Notification for Access to Passport Records in the Department of State’s Passport Information Electronic Records System (PIERS)]on data breaches at the State Department. EPIC’s testimony recommended implementing the privacy protections of S. 495, the Personal Data Privacy and Security Act of 2007; limiting employee and contractor disclosures; increasing accounting requirements; and creating an independent privacy agency. In a FOIA request filed today, EPIC demanded the release of the complete Inspector General report, substantial portions of which have been withheld from the public.”