Democratic lawmakers urge GAO to probe DOT's airline privacy oversight

Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Shontel Brown wrote to GAO acting Comptroller General Orice Brown, urging a comprehensive audit of the Transportation Department’s airline passenger privacy practices. The pair noted that, although the department has held sole jurisdiction over passenger data for more than 40 years, it has never initiated an enforcement action on privacy violations. Citing a 2025 report that a data broker linked to several U.S. airlines sold flight information to Customs and Border Protection, and claims that the Drug Enforcement Administration bribed airline staff to obtain passenger data, they warned that the lack of oversight enables corporate misuse and warrantless surveillance.

A Congressional Research Service review reportedly found no public enforcement or civil penalties issued by the department. While the DOT announced an industry-wide privacy review in 2024, the lawmakers say no substantive results have been released. Their request asks GAO to assess the status of that review, examine coordination with the DEA, and evaluate the current complaint-driven oversight model, and to propose legislative steps to compel stronger privacy protection.