Protecting personal data

"Without succombing to excessive Orwellian-style paranoia, the growing number of ways for identifying individuals raises legitimate concerns and questions," observes Jacques Hillion, an editorial writer with the weekly. "Under cover of technological progress and the need for security, the pressure on individuals is rising steadily. (...) A person's intrinsic and personal characterists are these days increasingly necessary to open doors and borders. A case in point: Europe is eliminating the mention of one's religion on Greek identity cards, but is accepting the biometric passports demanded by the United States. Religion is thus part of the private sphere while fingerprints belong to the public domain, even though both define an individual. And even if one identifier lasts forever, while the other can change in the course of a lifetime."

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