The IRS has been found to have accessed a vast database of American travelers’ flight records — including destinations, times, and credit card usage — without a warrant, according to an anonymous report and a letter signed by a bipartisan group of lawmakers. The report, shared with 404 Media, reveals that the IRS purchased access to this data from the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), a data broker co-owned by major airlines such as Delta, United, American Airlines, and Southwest.
The lawmakers’ letter to the airlines outlines the IRS’s actions, citing an internal disclosure that states the agency did not follow federal law and its own policies in acquiring the data. ‘Disclosures made by the IRS to Senator Wyden confirm that it did not follow federal law and its own policies in purchasing airline data from ARC,’ the letter states. The IRS is accused of bypassing the need for a warrant or court order, instead taking advantage of the fact that the data was being sold commercially by ARC, a private entity. The letter condemns the IRS’s actions and urges the airlines to shut down the data selling program, which they claim has been a long-standing and legally questionable practice.
The letter is the first major public accusation of the IRS engaging in this type of data access without legal authorization, highlighting broader concerns about government agencies obtaining private information without due process. The airlines, including Delta, United, American, and Southwest, have been co-owners of ARC since its inception, and they have reportedly sold access to their customer data to government entities for years. The lawmakers are now pushing for a complete shutdown of this program, which has been criticized as a breach of privacy and a potential overreach of government power. As of the publication of this report, ARC has stated that it already intended to discontinue the data selling program, marking a significant shift in the industry’s approach to data privacy and transparency.