[Infowarrior] - Chertoff Says Fingerprints Aren't Personal Data

[Richard Forno]

http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2008/04/chertoff_says_f.html

Chertoff Says Fingerprints Aren't Personal Data

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says:

    QUESTION: Some are raising that the privacy aspects of this thing, you
know, sharing of that kind of data, very personal data, among four countries
is quite a scary thing.

    SECRETARY CHERTOFF: Well, first of all, a fingerprint is hardly personal
data because you leave it on glasses and silverware and articles all over
the world, they're like footprints. They're not particularly private.

Sounds like he's confusing "secret" data with "personal" data. Lots of
personal data isn't particularly secret.