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TSA's Sloppy Redacting Reveals All

Posted by kdawson on from the hire-a-competent-clerk-why-don'tcha dept.

A travel blog breaks the story of a poor job of redacting by the TSA: they posted a PDF of airport screening policies, with certain sections blacked out — not realizing that simply laying a black rectangle over the text is hardly sufficient. Cryptome has posted a copy with the redaction removed (ZIP).

15 of 605 comments (clear)

  1. ^H is cheaper on ink by syousef · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hey TSA dudes, do your bit for the environment and use ^H like we do on slashdot.

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  2. I've always had the greatest confidence in TSA by edwebdev · · Score: 5, Funny

    but must admit that this strikes a blow to their reputation for competence and effectiveness.

  3. Redaction by A+Guy+From+Ottawa · · Score: 5, Funny

    ttp:cryptomeorgtsa-screeningzip

    The cryptome URL has been redacted. Nothing to see here, move along.

    Sincerely,
    TSA

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  4. Re:Select All by MichaelSmith · · Score: 4, Funny

    Whats the penalty for subverting a copy prevention measure?

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  5. Idiots by Dan+East · · Score: 3, Funny

    Idiots. They should have changed the text color to white for the stuff they wanted to hide.

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    1. Re:Idiots by MichaelSmith · · Score: 3, Funny

      You would need to find a way to stop people printing the PDF on to black paper.

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  6. Re:Actual Link to the zip by Kral_Blbec · · Score: 5, Funny

    dude, you zipped a pdf....
    thats almost as bad as when my mom puts a jpg in a doc to email it.

  7. As effective as the rest of the TSA by BrianRoach · · Score: 3, Funny

    Why is the fact that their redacting technique is as useful and effective as their screening techniques surprising to anyone?

    TSA, bringing you the best in security theatre since 2001!

  8. Re:CIA Redactions by unitron · · Score: 4, Funny

    You just gave me a mental image of some TSA bureaucrat sitting at his computer putting black magic marker lines on the CRT screen as he reviews the PDF.

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  9. Re:TSA? by amRadioHed · · Score: 5, Funny

    Since when has global significance been a requirement for slashdot articles? Half the time significance isn't even a requirement.

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  10. Re:Actual Link to the zip by zmotula · · Score: 3, Funny

    Just this weekend I experienced a flash game embedded in a XLS enclosed in an Outlook .eml file. I hope it does not get worse than that, otherwise I am sure we'd be breaking some laws of topology.

  11. Re:Well, at least the rest don't do this. by Xaositecte · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yo dawg, I heard you like security, so I put some lines in your lines so you can wait while you wait.

  12. Re:Well, at least the rest don't do this. by The+Wooden+Badger · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...Oxygen gets you high. In a catastrophic emergency, you're taking giant panicked breaths. Suddenly you become euphoric, docile. You accept your fate. It's all right here. Emergency water landing - 600 miles an hour. Blank faces, calm as Hindu cows.

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  13. Re:Well, at least the rest don't do this. by s1lverl0rd · · Score: 3, Funny

    It's turtles all the way down!

  14. Re:Actual Link to the zip by dkleinsc · · Score: 5, Funny

    Which, as the summary explains, is absolutely true.

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