Bill Scannell, organizer of the successful Boycott Adobe campaign launched when Russian programmer Dmitry Sklyarov was arrested in the summer of 2001, is now calling for a boycott on Delta.

At issue is Delta's test run this month of CAPPS II, the Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System. CAPPS II would require background checks on all airline passengers when they book a ticket, including checking credit reports, banking and criminal records. Passengers would then be assigned a threat level -- red, yellow or green -- which would help authorities determine if they should be subjected to increased security checks at the airport or refused boarding. Advocates of CAPPS II insist the system will identify terrorists while allowing law-abiding citizens to avoid the airport security shakedown. But privacy advocates like Scannell believe CAPPS II is highly intrusive and ineffective in identifying terrorists. Delta will be trying out CAPPS II at three as-yet undisclosed airports during the month of March. It's a first step prior to potentially deploying CAPPS II screening throughout the country over the next year. Scannell hopes that people will join in his boycott to send a message to the airline industry and the government that CAPPS II is not acceptable. According to a January Federal Register notice containing some details of the program, CAPPS II will store information about those deemed a yellow- or red-level threat for up to 50 years.