This exemption is cited to withhold any personal information, “the
disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion
of personal privacy.” It applies in any situation in which the privacy interest in the requested information
outweighs the public interest (if any) served by disclosing the information.
GN 03316.105, GN 03316.110, GN 03316.115, GN 03316.120, GN
03316.125 lists disclosures which have been determined not to be unwarranted invasions of personal privacy.
A U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1989 (U.S. Department
of Justice vs. Reporters Committee on Freedom of the Press) ruled that this exemption applies to personally identifiable information about living
individuals unless:
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•
Disclosure would inform the public about a Federal agency's performance of its statutory
duties, and
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•
This public interest outweighs the privacy interests of the individuals to whom the
information pertains.
EXAMPLE: A requester wants to know whether his neighbor receives Social Security benefits.
Disclosure would not serve the public interest and would constitute an invasion of
the neighbor's privacy, so Exemption 6 applies.