Despite pulling in 260,000 travelers at $199 each, Clear's expedited security-clearance program in 18 airports has shut down.
Verified Identity Pass, which operates the Clear service, said via e-mail and on its Web site that it was "unable to negotiate an agreement with its senior creditor to continue operations." The Clear service was suspended at all 18 airports as of 11 a.m. PDT Monday.
The message to Clear subscribers like myself: "Get back in line."
Ironically, Clear was apparently charging Clear subscribers' credit cards right up until the announcement, as revealed by the commenters to a Los Angeles Times' article on Clear's closure. I guess the company needs every little bit as it heads to bankruptcy proceedings.
Sigh.
Despite signing up for Clear almost from its inception, at first I wasn't a big advocate of the service (though CNET's Dave Rosenberg was). At my home airport in Salt Lake City, the difference between Delta's Medallion line and Clear's security lane was minimal.
But over the past few months, I've had more occasion to benefit from the service, and I can say that I will truly miss Clear. It has saved me from missing more than one flight. I want it back.
It would appear, however, that the cost of maintaining the service exceeds the roughly $52 million in subscription fees that Verified Identity Pass was able to bring in to support the Clear service. With costly biometric scanners and several Clear employees at each security station, it's not hard to see how the costs could add up.
Of course, Clear's various snafus and problems, as ZDNet's Jason Perlow writes, couldn't have helped.
Regardless, I doubt that many will appreciate Clear apparently renewing subscriptions right up until the moment the announcement of its closure. That's bad form. I understand the need to satisfy creditors. But in the age of blogs, Twitter, and Facebook, it seems like an ill-advised policy to charge for a service you're about to shutter .
Expect a backlash.
Clear's announcement via e-mail.
(Credit: Matt Asay)Follow me on Twitter @mjasay.
A laptop with information on prescreened travelers, which was reported stolen, has been found, and the incident may be relabeled the case of the misplaced laptop.
Late Monday, the Transportation Security Administration had announced that a laptop containing data on about 33,000 travelers who had applied for a national airport security fast-pass card was believed to have been stolen from a locked office at the San Francisco Airport in late July.
Early Tuesday, however, the computer was found in the same company office from which it was supposedly stolen on July 26, Allison Beer, senior vice president for corporate development for Verified Identity Pass, which runs the Clear screening program, told The San Francisco Chronicle. The computer, which held names, addresses, and birthdates for people applying to the program, was found in the same airport office but not in its previous location, the executive told the newspaper.
"Yes, it was sensitive privacy information, but not the stuff that was most sensitive," the executive told the paper, adding that a preliminary investigation showed that information was not compromised.
As a result of the investigation, new sign-ups for the program have been suspended. The program lets travelers pay to have the TSA verify their identities, allowing them access to special security lanes in airports to avoid lengthy security line waits.
Updated 1:30 p.m. PDT with laptop being found.
The perils to consumer privacy are getting greater day by day.
In a recent headlines, nearly 130 workers at UCLA Medical Center are accused of prying into the medical records of celebrities and other patients. One woman is even accused of selling information about Farrah Fawcett's cancer treatment to tabloids, according to the Los Angeles Times.
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose wife, Maria Shriver, is believed to have had her records snooped on at the hospital, has endorsed legislation that would impose penalties on hospitals and workers for patient privacy breaches.
The breach opens UCLA Medical Center up to lawsuits and government investigations related to alleged violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, which requires medical providers to safeguard the privacy of patients, said Brian Cleary, vice president of marketing at Aveksa, which provides access governance solutions to enterprises.
"UCLA has had this happen multiple times," but is not unique, he says. For instance, the passports of presidential candidates John McCain, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton were looked at by unauthorized government workers earlier this year, and George Clooney's medical data was breached after a motorcycle accident in New Jersey last year.
"The number of incidents suggests that these organizations do not have an effective (data access) control framework," Cleary says. "Even the federal government needs some work here."
Apparently, the San Francisco Airport could use some help, too.
A laptop containing data on about 33,000 travelers who applied for a national airport fast pass card was believed to have been stolen from a locked office at the San Francisco Airport in late July, according to The San Jose Mercury News.
The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that the laptop was found in the room where it was supposed to be.
The alleged breach had forced officials to temporarily halt enrollment in the program, The San Jose Mercury News report said.
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