DOT closes airline privacy review with no penalties

The US Department of Transportation ended its review of how the 10 largest US airlines handle passenger data, finding no violations and taking no enforcement action. The notice adds no new rules, only reminding airlines of existing obligations, so traveler privacy protections remain unchanged.

• Review covered passenger data from January 2022 to March 2024
• All 10 airlines have staff training and a privacy policy
• DOT listed three violations: deception, weak safeguards, policy breach
• Sen. Wyden criticized DOT for no privacy fines in 40 years