Torch Concepts

According to the September 23, 2003, article "JetBlue privacy--under federal wings?" by Declan McCullagh, "A presentation prepared by contractor, Torch Concepts of Huntsville, Ala., describes how it merged the JetBlue database with U.S. Social Security numbers, home addresses, income levels and vehicle ownership information it purchased from Acxiom, a company that sells consumer data. Not all the details are clear, but the presentation discusses how Torch, on behalf of Uncle Sam, tried to rate each passenger's security risk level by analyzing the merged databases."

The Torch Concepts, whose home page boasts that "The information you need, always at your desktop!", describes itself as "leaders in advanced technology for content management and information mining." Under the heading of "Products", Torch states


 * "Torch Concepts products provide companies with a virtual library that is far more capable than any actual library. They find and organize all internal and relevant external documents, and instantly and accurately associate and cross-reference new documents. Your workers are able to routinely and quickly search and retrieve information they need … and the resourceful Torch Agent, once alerted to user interests, finds and delivers specific information to them daily.


 * "With Torch Concepts products, your workers no longer have to waste money and valuable time performing repeated searches and manual screening to get the information they need. Each user always has the most up-to-date information available relevant to his or her individual needs.


 * "You can mix and match our powerful products to fit your organization's exact content management and information mining needs - easily, seamlessly, and economically."

Other SourceWatch Resources

 * Acxiom
 * ChoicePoint
 * Computer Assisted Passenger PreScreening System II
 * CAPPS II abuses
 * data mining
 * internet surveillance
 * Total Information Awareness