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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?
Just build a wall, ok?
Get it over with.
"Guilty until proven innocent?"
No, not at all. You waive your rights when you purchase your ticket, which is a voluntary act. By purchasing your ticket, you are agreeing to the conditions attached to it, which include submitting to a search. If you don't want to be searched, don't buy a ticket, and find another way to travel.
A pat-down probably won't find an SD card with encrypted data -- a body scan probably would.
Hey, let's everyone "pay their fair share".
We all know this government will use that extra money wisely and for our benefit!
quite well organized group with lots of resources and ready to die members (who can resist extended interrogation techniques?) to change the system.
This is definitely our main security concern in airports. Especially when traveling domestically!
Ask to avoid the scanner? Why that's a clear sign you have something to hide. You therefore must be a terrorist - go through the scanner.
excitingthingstodo.blogspot.com
The rule was always just for the general pop, who were not currently undergoing extra screening. The TSA can pump your stomach on a whim and a suspicion, they can strip search you, they can destroy your property, they can detain you, of course they can compel you to walk through a scanner.
Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
It's not for this. And no, an SD card would be easy. Put it in your mouth, between your buttcheeks, taped to your skin, almost any way to get it through. Or just put it in your wallet with your phone. These scans are only searching for bombs/guns, and only have a 5% success rate. Theatre.
Whilst I don't like the body scanner, and prefer the old fashioned metal detectors, I would happily take either in preference to a pat down.
Part of the reason that I don't like the body scanner is it is much more likely to "find" a false positive requiring a partial pat down by the officers than the metal detector is.
And an SD card is a security hazard how exactly?
A pat-down probably won't find an SD card with encrypted data -- a body scan probably would.
What's your point? I have several SD cards that are encrypted. They're in my laptop bag and get scanned every time. Why would I try to hide them? They're not illegal.
"A plan fiendishly clever in its intricacies"- Homer Simpson
Pat downs are not guaranteed. There is so much that can slip through that you could have caught with a scanner. Do you know that since the program has started, the number of tiger attacks on airplanes has been reduced to zero? A pat down is not guaranteed to find a tiger hidden on your person. But by irradiating the entire body, they are 1.8% more likely to find any tigers you have hidden on your person. We simply can't take the risk people.
If you are not allowed to question your government then the government has answered your question.
So if there aren't some really specific rules, there is a very large chance of one of the TSA idiots on a power trip saying "too bad, I insist you get one".
These assholes love to act like they're in control.
The reality is they're little more than rent-a-cops who act like they're on a power trip.
Fuck you, DHS and TSA. We need far better rules that protect our safety and our rights ... I'm not taking the word of a high school dropout with 3 weeks of training that machine is safe.
And unless you fucking plan on reimbursing us for the flight, rejecting us because we won't get in your stupid scanner is bullshit.
Land of the free? Fuck that. Land of the cowering, simpering idiots. America has become a shithole.
I would agree but only if the scanner is of the safe sort which uses Terahertz radiation. While a pat down would not be pleasant I'd take it any day over the backscatter X-ray scanners which have a tiny, but non-zero, chance of giving you cancer. While this risk is tiny there is absolutely no need to take it given that there are perfectly safe scanners available. So if the TSA is going to be able to compel you to get scanned then they need to be compelled to provide safe scanners which use non-ionizing radiation.
Awww, come on. Let him pretend he's Jason Bourne and his SD card full of encrypted hentai is critical to national security!
Does anyone with a functional brain stem still think that this goobermint is serving them, instead of themselves?
What is this designed to prevent? Shoe bombers? No, it's about subjugation! Grab your ankle's and enjoy it serf's!
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?
Stop flying! Subjecting yourself to the security theater willingly only servers to prolong it.
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.
Can we do anything force passengers to go through the scanner instead of us having to pat them down? Because... fat chicks.
A pat-down probably won't find an SD card with encrypted data -- a body scan probably would.
What's your point? I have several SD cards that are encrypted. They're in my laptop bag and get scanned every time. Why would I try to hide them? They're not illegal.
They're encrypted. Just give it time.
"What the American public doesn't know is what makes them the American public." -Ray Zalinsky (Tommy Boy)
is now required to opt out.
Even a pretend-billionaire can buy his own plane. You think he worries about these things? NO! This is why he should be president of the US of A.
I'm with you. I have been opting out since day one. Should I be required I will simply, and calmly refuse. If they do not allow me and my family to board then I will demand a refund from the airline since I agreed to a screening but not an irradiated, 95% failure rate one. They will have to issue a refund or book me on a later flight. If not, I will issue a chargeback on my card and sue them and the TSA, and FAA, for any damages.
I appreciate the enthusiasm. You sound a little sue-happy, but, I believe the stigmatization of those who sue has been a propaganda against the people in the US to get us to give up more of our power. For better or worse, we are a "small" government country and the lawsuits are the primary form of justice for all sorts of fuckery which other western nations would disallow through regulation. Lawsuits are very much part of the power of the little person in this country BY DESIGN, It's unfortunate that the populace has been convinced that lawsuits are bad or frivolous. It allows the corporate / government to dismantle our power in court without the country putting up a fight (which they have been doing quite successfully).
If enough of us stand up there is a chance, if everyone continues to be spineless sheep then we are screwed. Disney just installed metal detectors at parks, work that one out and you will see where we are headed as a society. Stand the hell up for yourself and others!
Welp, then, we're screwed.
I don't actually think metal detectors are THAT bad if they worked or were deployed in good faith. But, they don't work. They installed metal detectors at MLB parks in the last few years. I was at my MLB team's opening day the first year of metal detectors (which was a complete boondoggle). They don't put your STUFF through the metal detector. And, if you go at peak time, they are too busy to take a good look in your bag. Literally, wrap a gun in a woman's sweater and put it at the bottom of a bag of food and water, and it will get into the park. The metal detectors, if anything, make this problem WORSE because now the screeners seem to have LESS time and interest at looking in your bag.
It doesn't matter if metal detectors work at detecting weapons or not. That doesn't seem to be their purpose. Their purpose seems to be to remind Joe Sixpack that if he wants to get along in American society he had better fall in line. And, THAT is scary indeed, because it seems to have worked pretty well thus far.
Yeah, and if I were trying to get an SD card on to a plane, I'd do like I did last time I was on a plane. By putting it in my carry on and running it through the X-ray. If they don't give a damn about my phone, laptop, tablet or any other electronic device that could contain encrypted data, why the hell would they care about an SD card?
It's all a farce. Not only does the TSA do an abysmal job of detecting threats (something like 90% failure in one study) they can't see into body cavities. If you land in jail that's part of the routine - inspecting your body cavity for smuggled contraband. The TSA scanners are useless in this regard. Perhaps the only hope is if they implement something like Recta Security.
What will be next is real-time analysis of waste streams from peoples' homes (hey, it's a public utility, so...). Evidence of booze, drugs, diabetes, etc. will be shared with the police states' partners in the health insurance industry.
The frog-boiling will start with those in public housing / assistance, because eff the poor, right?
We could all gang together and vote out those politicians that like anti-liberty organizations like TSA and vote those in who would disband it the first chance they got.
Or you can keep voting democrat and neo-con.
They are subject to regulation as a radiation emitting device (more than just medical devices are regulated.. the X-ray machine you use to inspect welds is regulated) And most of the machines have internal interlock systems with a radiation detector, so that if the dose goes outside fairly narrow bands, they shut down.
They've shown how body scans miss weaponry on people testing the system. (These are professionals. Do NOT bring a gun to the TSA line and then say "well, I was just testing security.") If the scanners can't detect weaponry regularly, how would it find an SD card? As a followup, why would they need to find an SD card? Yes, the data on it might be a threat, but the SD card itself isn't a threat to the flight or the people on it.
My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
The machines false like crazy. I got pat downs coming and going, as it falsed on a number of locations including the groin, of course.
Your all fucking criminals
http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
Why does the useless and hateful TSA still exist? We need to get rid of this oppressive "security" force.
Personally, I believe that the TSA having to look at my near-naked scan is probably punishment enough for whatever they've done to me that trip. I'd call it even.
-Styopa
Maybe it has the Independence Day virus on it and he's planning to disable the shields of all the aircraft connected to the same air-traffic control system with his 1996 Powerbook?
According to the TSA they found 31 loaded guns in carry-on bags *this week* so they must be doing something right. http://blog.tsa.gov/2015/12/ts...
I'm sorry sir, but I don't want to destroy my shoulder joints which have been injured during years of manual labor and could cause an immediate medical event. Please make sure that you pat me down instead. Thank you. What are they supposed to do at that point? Risk a federal lawsuit for discriminating against disabled individuals?
As a followup, why would they need to find an SD card? Yes, the data on it might be a threat, but the SD card itself isn't a threat to the flight or the people on it.
Not a threat until someone opens up the headrest screen and inserts the SD card into the computer there, infecting the whole plane with a Mac-virus and forces it to fly into a building!
It's not broken, it's advanced.
"While passengers may generally decline AIT screening in favor of physical screening, TSA may direct mandatory AIT screening for some passengers,"
Those "some passengers" being the commie liberal terrorist sympathisers who request to opt out of the body scanners?
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Not at all. Guilty, period. Whether or not you prove your innocence.
The NSA: The only part of the US government that actually listens.
Hint one; they do not body scan these bags. These are completely separate issues.
Hint two; most of these were guns people completely legally carry in the US and forgot to take out of their bags. You will notice they don't state the number that they miss which probably runs into the hundreds.
According to the TSA they found 31 loaded guns in carry-on bags *this week* so they must be doing something right. http://blog.tsa.gov/2015/12/ts...
What they don't tell you is that TSA red team folks put over 100 guns in carry on bags this week.
Oops.
Muslim, or look Muslim (Sikh). Welcome to America!
"Guilty until proven innocent?"
That's what security is all about.
They've "only" destroyed 9 Medtronic insulin pumps ... what's 9 dead people compared to a technology proven to stop terrorists at airports, as evidenced by our large number of public trials, and the terrorists subsequently jailed, thanks to AIT scanners.
What do you mean, we've not caught a single terrorist with an AIT scanner? Are you sure?!? Try Googling it... you *must* be wrong! AIT scanners are good for you!
This is why I haven't flown anywhere in 15 years. This shit right here.
I'll just drive wherever I want to go in the US and sail anywhere else....
I will not let TSA grope me or my family to get on a plane.
I will not let TSA irradiate me with machines that were forced into use by the same Senator who owned a healthy share of the company that manufactured them.
I will not let TSA take my personal laptop or electronics because I won't give them the passwords to 'look through them'.
Seriously, Fuck the TSA and this whole thing.
I drive, and can see the sights along the way.
I sail, and can enjoy the ocean and get a new experience.
For those that say they have no time.... You should make the tme and stop taking everything so seriously.... no one gets out of here alive.
31 guns...out of the 600 that people had in their carry-on bags overall.
You're guilty until proven guilty.
As other folks have mentioned... I prefer to limit my exposure to needless radiation. We already get dosed from a myriad of other sources, no need to add on; especially since dosages are cumulative. At least they've ditched the backscatter xray machines... those really concerned me. Regarding the pat down - I've never had an issue with the TSA - they are just trying to do their job. They've always been professional and courteous. In any event, if for some reason they still want me to go through the MM machine, I'll do so without a fuss. I'd just rather avoid it, if possible.
I've filed an emergency motion for preliminary injunction / temporary restraining order.
http://slashdot.org/firehose.p...
http://s.ai - http://s.ai/foia - http://s.ai/tsa/legal - https://patreon.com/saizai
I'm sorry but, while i do respect your opinion, i'm also kind of tempted to say - with no offense, really, even if that sounds a little strong - that perhaps you guys should consider getting over yourselves and your body parts, and rather use your time and energy for better purposes. ... just my opinion.
We learn from history that we learn nothing from history - Tom Veneziano
Not a threat until someone opens up the headrest screen and inserts the SD card into the computer there, infecting the whole plane with a Mac-virus and forces it to fly into a building!
A Mac-virus can only force it to fly into an alien spaceship.
Guilty until proven innocent?
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
I wouldn't fly if there was no security. You dumbasses act like you don't have shit to live for. Go fuck your selves. I want as much safety as possible. I hate transpiration when I can't control my movements. I sure as hell don't want to worry about crazy assholes with nothing to live for taking down a plane, in addition to the mechanical failure of the plane and other logistical issues already in play. Stay the fuck out of my country and walk your ass to your car, if you don't want to fly be the rule.
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 :-)
The scary thing is that when they pat you down your bags are often out of sight. Which opens up the door to a system being compromised. An SD card could also be compromised at the same time if it contains an operating system... or similar. If the OS/hardware is compromised all bets are off.
I've been opting out. Just did in November, coming back from Disney. I was actually a little surprised how politely and efficiently/effectively the pat-down was done, as previous times, I was not impressed.
The possibility that I will no longer be able to opt out means I will no longer be spending my tourist dollars in the USA. Do you hear that Disney? I'm spending my $$ elsewhere.
Fat and ugly people get a free pass. I only scan the hot chicks.
I have no idea *what* the TSA teaches but I might find an SD card in a search. As mentioned above, I worked as a transport officer while in the Marines (I'd been in Motor Pool prior as a driver) and learned to do a "proper" search. No, you would not stand for it. We do mouth checks. Your shoes are removed. Your hands are against the wall with your feet back behind you - so that you can not get leverage and harm us. We check your hair. We check your seams on your clothing. We do check private parts but we don't grab and feel around.
Your best hiding spot would be to wrap it in a condom, tie the end, and put it in your mangina. Your butt-cheeks might work but do you *really* want to tape it? I'm gonna find it in your wallet. I'm gonna find it in your phone (if it's hidden in anywhere like the battery case or something). I'm gonna find it in your sock. I'm gonna find it where you cut a slit and put it in your waistband. I'm gonna find it in your hat. I'm gonna make you shake your hair and do it repeatedly in different directions. It's gonna be a minute but I'm going to do it properly every single time and I'm going to find it unless you put it in your butt (or swallow it) or, maybe, tape it to your butt cheeks. I'm gonna find it if you tape it to your leg. Or to your foot. Or up your nose. You could, probably, tape it to your nuts or dick. I'd not find that.
While I did do strip searches (and I might find it in your anus - you squat and cough a half dozen times with your cheeks spread out and it glints 'cause I gotta shine a flashlight at it while you do that) they're probably not going to make you do that before a flight. So, you're good there - hopefully.
And, I gotta tell ya... I know, I've been strip searched too, that it is dehumanizing to be stripped but it's not that cool to be the guy who has to do it or be in there with you. It's far more dehumanizing to be the striped than it is to be the observer but no part in that aspect of detainment is enjoyable. Fortunately, I seldom had to strip the detainees. It was not normally my job but certain high level inmates go through a slightly different protocol and thus we get to escort them all the way inside. Doing that is a pain in the arse. You've got to secure your weapon, deal with paperwork, log your weapon, secure your gear, etc... And, you gotta strip 'em out.
Anyhow, I guess the point is, if you want to get an SD card through a real pat-search then you probably want to go with the condom in the butt option. The TSA isn't going to be fondling your cock and balls or sliding a few fingers up your ass crack - or even checking/patting the underside of your foot and between your toes. But, you know, if you actually have something important and you don't want them to find it then the butt is probably your best option. You can swallow it but I'm not sure how well the condom will hold up to the acid.
Also, I might have not mentioned something but, trust me, we searched that too - within reason. If they had justification then they'd bring a physician in and do cavity searches. Nothing from the outside ever made it into the secure area as far as I know - even the guards got searched. I only had to go as far as the sally port most of the time. Had I gone past that (like in training) then I too would have been searched. However, I am kind of hoping the TSA doesn't ever reach that sort of level. It'd take a lot of time, be really bad as far as liberty and freedom is concerned, and would piss me off to no end. Though, I suppose, it'd probably stop a passenger from getting on the plane with a pair of fingernail clippers - if they hired competent people.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
It'd be pretty damned hard for them to state the number they missed. After all, by definition, they missed them. I clicked the link and, sadly, they also got someone's 1918 trench. It looks like a reproduction so it's no big loss but it'd still kind of suck as even some of the reproductions are nice.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
In addition to posting here, make sure that you go to the TSA website and file a complaint against their new policy. The more of us that make noise, the harder it will be for them to do this.
https://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/tsacontact/DynaForm.aspx?FormID=10
Remember these are unlicensed medical devices. More importantly, we should have full control over any radiation that is subjected upon our bodies by man made means.
Ma'am I could pat you down and get a thrill today, but I'm gonna have thrills for the rest of my days from the photos I'll take of you when I force you through the body scanner
Out of interest, did they have to pay for those pumps?
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
And with their 96% failure rate apparently 775 loaded guns went through undetected *this week*.
Still think they are "doing something right"?
Not only do I not have to wait in line, but I walk my happy ass through a metal detector without removing any clothing.
This is yet another reason not to fly and if your employer requires you to travel, ask if they will allow you to take a train or drive to your destination. If they won't due to it taking more time, see if you can take vacation leave for this extra time. Just keep in mind when traveling by train that carrying cash is a big no-no. The DEA, Local police departments, and even the TSA will often stop trains and seize money that they believe is involved in illegal activities such as drugs. In fact, the DEA use to get a list of Amtrak passengers and pick potential targets to search when they do a sweep of a train at a stop. If you must carry cash, use travelers cheques. This way if it is seized by the DEA, TSA/DHS, or a local police department it is useless since you can report these travelers cheques as stolen. You may want to do this if driving or using another mode of transport such as a bus or by boat. The TSA has set up VIPR checkpoints in bus and train stations and plan to expand this program to include setting up road blocks so even driving yourself to a destination could result in an encounter with the TSA or other agency and any cash could be seized.
Out of interest, did they have to pay for those pumps?
Medtronic replaced the 5 cases with which I am directly familiar; I do not know about the other 4.
My thinking is that the politics is such that the replacements are both free positive publicity, and a reminder not to take the things through devices which emit X-rays (even if it's a side effect, rather than an intended primary effect, of the AIT's). Also not certain whether there's an anti-AIT agenda at the company, or not, but replacing devices has got to be something they do not typically look forward to doing, despite the publicity, so it would not surprise me.
Thanks for the follow up answer.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
Not only are the detectors practically useless (one episode of testing managed to sneak 7 weapons through on one guy..), they are hazardous for your health.
Terahertz radiation can damage DNA. Mutations for the sake of security company profits are an excellent scam, don't you think?
Those scanners cant see anything under folds of skin or inside you. SD card is a piece of piss to sneak through them, as you don't go through the metal detectors when using the DNA raping scanners..