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TSA Body Scanner Opt-out No Longer Guaranteed (slashgear.com)
codguy writes: Up to now, airline passengers have been able opt out of the TSA's Advanced Imaging Technologies (AIT) whole body scanners, and request a physical pat-down for their security check. But ProPublica journalist Julia Angwin points out that a rule change on December 18, 2015 now allows the TSA to compel some passengers to use these scanners instead of giving them a pat-down. The updated rule says, "While passengers may generally decline AIT screening in favor of physical screening, TSA may direct mandatory AIT screening for some passengers," (PDF source). Of course, the criteria for when this can happen is completely unspecified, and one can easily imagine them abusing this by deciding to compel anyone who requests a pat-down to go through the scanners for some reasonable cause from their perspective. Guilty until proven innocent?
I have been opting out for years and appreciate my right to do so. If push comes to shove I would cancel my trip if I was compelled. Is any analysis available if I would be able to get a refund from Visa in this circumstance? Is any documentation possible to get from TSA possible to support such a claim. And is there any other form of non violent protest that I can do on the spot which would not get me put in jail / shit / no-fly listed? Seeking serious answers for a principled person.
Actually, it's walking on thin ice. The right to assemble is guaranteed in the first amendment, and implicit in that is the right to travel. It can be argued, quite rationally, that travel by plane is part of that. I want to travel to Hawaii? Sure, you could take a boat and spend a week round trip in transit, but that's quite a penalty. And what stops a nefarious government from starting a "no public transit" list? And if they revoke your drivers license? Where do we draw the line? What if we're in a not-too-distant future where private ownership of cars is a thing of the past and you can be denied any travel that you can't walk to?
I am more concerned about the clear sign saying "DO NOT USE IF PREGNANT OR MEDICAL CONDITION".
Go fuck yourself. If you are not suspected of a crime, nor have had a writ or warrant signed by a judge, there is no legal basis for a search. "Purchasing a ticket" does not give anyone the legal basis to violate your rights. If you believe that, you're part of the problem.
Fortunately, I won't willingly subject myself to being treated like a slave so I stay as far away from airports as I possibly can. If I ever do have to go to the airport again, I'll be sure and opt-out for the patdown. Of course, I'll also make sure I take 2-3 extra strength Viagra before I turn up at the checkpoint.
Wanting to go see grandma does not equal wanting to get skin cancer and nowhere on an airline ticket does it say you will be forced to endure radiation
I don't like these scanners either, but please don't be an idiot. The amount of ionizing radiation you get from the scanner is radically smaller than the extra amount you are going to get from spending time in an aircraft at 38000 ft, or eating a banana. Both risks are vanishingly small compared to the risk you incurred by driving to the airport.
Flying across the country will subject you to about 4,000 microrem. The TSA scanners, about 5 microrem. Independent (non-TSA affiliated) tests of over 700 scanners showed all were at or below their radiation targets.
There are plenty of good reasons to object to these scanners without introducing pseudscientific bullshit into it. Doing so just gives the other side of this debate more ammo to shoot down our side, who look like loons when they spout this kind of stuff. You want to object to the scanners? Great. Let's do it on civil rights grounds.
I fly during the primary holidays and I always opt-out ever since the process started. I've never had any issues so far and everyone has been respectable, more annoyed that they have to do extra work than anything else. Interestingly the times when it was very busy they stopped asking people to take off their shoes and let us keep our laptops in their bags.
Skin cancer runs in my family, so that's the reason I opt-out. I have no clue if the scanners promote cancer or not, but why take the risk? I'm already getting a radiation dose from flying. Do I have any recourses if they refuse my opt-out?
Are you aware of the danger of a simple mechanical failure? These are raster machines so they scan you by bombarding you with a paper thin plane beam than pans down your body. If that beam stops, even for a few seconds then it would irradiate the cells along that plane with a massive dose. Not "pseudo science".
"This message was sent from an Apple
as an american, I avoid outright any travel during the holidays. I can visit my family cheaper and with far less hassle any other time during the year. That having been said -- and I know this is going to be an unpopular opinion -- I've had relatively productive experiences with the TSA sans a few minor run-ins, likely enacted as part of the general TSA theatricality.
Returning to LA from Ohio on a business trip I was detained after an explosives detector found something on my hands. I was led to a small concrete room with two bluecoats and my carry-on was privately searched. I explained a bar of soap, and they packed everything as they found it and sent me on my way. Another time, I decided to exit the very tedious screening line to get a beer at an adjacent microbrewery in the portland airport. Big mistake. I was detained by police and questioned for leaving the line. I told them the line was boring, and I wanted beer. After refusing to answer a few questions about religion and my laptop password, my laptop was confiscated and i was free to return to the pub. I rescheduled my flight, shared a laugh with the bartender, and re-entered the line only to be followed by the cops again to my gate. My laptop was returned, along with an apology and some rambling nonsense about muslims. They didnt crack a smile until I asked how many beers the average muslim drinks in a day.
Travel is simple, with a few caveats*, in america. board with a smile, speak softly, dress comfortably, and keep entertained. Im willing to suspect most TSA officers wont turn away a kind face asking for an opt out.
*simple travel may not be available to anyone of middle eastern, south asian, or african american descent.
Good people go to bed earlier.
We can discuss the mechanics by which they "work" all day, but honestly, in my own experience, they don't work in the sense that they have way too many false positives.
I have pretty long hair down to my lower back, and in my experience, the scanners have a tendency to flag various points on my upper back simply because my hair is there. It's gotten to the point where I automatically assume I'm going to need a pat-down because of it flinging yellow squares all over my upper back on the TSA's monitor.
The funny thing to me is that I fly often enough and I've gotten so used to it that I'll typically crack a joke about it as soon as I get into the scanner, and when I turn out to be right, half the time the TSA agent just waves me through because he or she realizes that I've been through this so many times that I've come to expect the false-positives. That's one hell of a vote of confidence, when the actual users of the scanners don't even have faith in the results.
To digress, I do have to say that 99% of the TSA agents I've encountered have been unflaggingly polite. I think it's easy for a lot of us to lose sight of the fact that ultimately, most of these people didn't sign up for the alluring chance of getting to feel up grandma, they signed up because it was a job, and in today's job market said jobs are pretty scarce. They're not demonic shock troops, they're just Joe Q. Average people who want to get through their 8 hours and then go home and knock back a beer or two. If you don't go through security with an attitude, you typically won't get one back.
I opt out just about every time. I take about 14-18 flights a year for business and I have only seen another opt out at the same time as me once in the past few years. There just aren't that many opt outs anymore. I'm not surprised at all that the police state is tightening the noose a bit more. On the plus side for those interested in opting out I have not had any of the experiences that everyone loves to joke about (ie cavity searches, hours of detention, etc). I did once have a TSA officer mouth off about sending me to the back of the line. I reported him to his boss but there was no further incident there. Another time a big burly TSA agent tried to intimidate me which I found funny. He was all talk and I knew that his options were limited. Another time their machine claimed it found something so I was taken to a side room. That time I admit I was wondering what was next but it was just another pat down by a different person who then used a different machine. Opt out while you still can :-)