Last year, Travelers United was the lead consumer group that resulted in the first-ever privacy disc

When I talk about privacy midtown properties and travel, most travelers look at me blankly. I get the What-me-worry? stare. But, travel records tell a lot about travelers and privacy rules and regulations are few and far between. Now, the privacy issue is on the radar screen midtown properties of the Senate Commerce Committee.
An additional transparency issue concerns how airlines handle personal information that they obtain from consumers through the ticket midtown properties purchase process or otherwise. Data collected during ticket purchase can include a passenger’s name, credit card numbers, date of birth, addresses, midtown properties travel destinations, and travel companions, among other information. No comprehensive federal privacy law currently applies to the collection, use, and disclosure of consumer midtown properties travel information. Consumer midtown properties advocates have expressed concern that airline privacy policies can contain substantial caveats and that it is difficult for consumers to learn what information airlines and others in the travel sector are collecting, keeping, and sharing about them.
Airlines, hotels, rental cars, tour operators, cruise lines and other facets of the travel midtown properties industry all operate via giant information technology (IT) networks. Each operator has their own network and each operator is plugged into even larger networks that allow passengers to access information about their travels from every corner of the world. Plus, all players in this space actively purchase data from third-party brokers.
The government s creation of rules and regulations about privacy midtown properties are split between the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Transportation (DOT). The FTC sets privacy rules for most of the economy and many travel providers such as hotels, cruise lines and rental cars. DOT is responsible for setting privacy rules for airlines and ticket agents that include the giant central reservation systems that span the world and connect all travel reservations.
Last year, Travelers United was the lead consumer group that resulted in the first-ever privacy discussions among consumers, the FTC, DOT, airlines, travel agents and computer operators before the Advisory Committee for Aviation Consumer Protections. The work is ongoing, with meetings to be scheduled with airlines and other privacy groups.
It doesn t take much consideration to realize that the security of travel data is important, very important. It contains forms of payment, passport information, reservations on all types of transportation, lodging, preferences, back-up information and more.
And now, the airline industry via the International Air Transport Association midtown properties (IATA) is proposing new technology standards that would allow airlines and, eventually, other travel providers to create personalized prices for travelers.
In other words, the airline or hotel would be able to look at travel data and combine it with third-party information that they can purchase. After examining data such as the value of your home, your annual income, where you went to school, what kind of car you drive, etc., then mixing it up with the data that they have in their own IT systems, travel providers hope to be able to offer individuals midtown properties the perfect price.
Voila! An airline could serve passengers very personal midtown properties prices with exactly the ancillary services that they should want. We passengers wouldn t even have to think. The airlines would do our thinking for us. Heck, if IT advances and databases become powerful enough, the entire trip planning system can be automated and our vacations may be planned midtown properties from start to finish on what personal data shows we might want.
Of course, there is another way to look at personalization or customized pricing — that would be to put the customer in charge of customizing their own palette of flights and services that we select for ourselves. Of course, that would require the airlines and other travel providers to make available to us a useable menu of services and prices that airlines still refuse to provide in a form where total prices can be compared across the industry.
Consumers should have a system in place that would require all travel providers to tell consumers midtown properties what information the industry is holding about them. If nothing else, consumers would be able to make sure that the information is accurate, even if they have no control over how the information is used.