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Aynsley Floyd/AP
Inspector Bill Desmond points to an object hidden under clothing during a
demonstration of the U.S. Customs Service's new BodySearch scanners. (AP)
Inspector Bill Desmond points to an object hidden under clothing during a
demonstration of the U.S. Customs Service's new BodySearch scanners. (AP)
Baring it All to Fly
June 16, 2008 09:43 AM
by
Josh Katz
New body scanners called backscatters reveal intimate details about one’s body, and are being installed in airports around the country.
30-Second Summary
Currently, randomly chosen passengers are using the new technology in airports in Los Angeles, Baltimore, Denver, Albuquerque and New York. This month, Dallas, Detroit, Las Vegas and Miami will be added to that list, making for a total of 38 operating machines in the United States, each costing around $170,000.
On average, the scanning process takes 30 seconds and it involves innocuous “millimeter waves.” But passengers and privacy advocates are concerned over the detailed images, which can show the “sweat on someone’s back,” according to James Schear, the Transportation Security Administration security director at Baltimore-Washington International Airport.
But the TSA promises that the images will remain as impersonal as possible. The airport employee who sees the passenger pushes a button to snap the picture but does not see it; a screener in another room examines the image for anything suspicious and then promptly deletes it. The faces are blurred and the passengers have the option of a pat-down in place of the scanner.
The American Civil Liberties Union has led the charge against the scanners, calling them a blatant disregard for privacy. There is also no guarantee that images would not find their way to the public, and the revelation of certain details like colostomy bags would be humiliating. Opponents also claim that the technology does not guarantee safety—a government audit said that weapons could pass through unnoticed.
Proponents contend that some privacy must be sacrificed for the sake of national security, and the measures imposed by the TSA to minimize discomfort are adequate.
On average, the scanning process takes 30 seconds and it involves innocuous “millimeter waves.” But passengers and privacy advocates are concerned over the detailed images, which can show the “sweat on someone’s back,” according to James Schear, the Transportation Security Administration security director at Baltimore-Washington International Airport.
But the TSA promises that the images will remain as impersonal as possible. The airport employee who sees the passenger pushes a button to snap the picture but does not see it; a screener in another room examines the image for anything suspicious and then promptly deletes it. The faces are blurred and the passengers have the option of a pat-down in place of the scanner.
The American Civil Liberties Union has led the charge against the scanners, calling them a blatant disregard for privacy. There is also no guarantee that images would not find their way to the public, and the revelation of certain details like colostomy bags would be humiliating. Opponents also claim that the technology does not guarantee safety—a government audit said that weapons could pass through unnoticed.
Proponents contend that some privacy must be sacrificed for the sake of national security, and the measures imposed by the TSA to minimize discomfort are adequate.
Headline Link: Body scanners coming to an airport near you
The new body scanners currently being installed in airports are causing concern for some. The images produced can be seen as an invasion of privacy. But passenger Syl Solomon told News Channel 8 in Washing, D.C., “Whatever makes for a safe flight, we’re in favor of it.”
Source: News Channel 8-ABC
James Schear, the TSA security director at Baltimore-Washington International Airport said the images show so much detail, “You can actually see the sweat on someone’s back.” However, government audits say that many weapons, bombs, wires and timers can go unnoticed. As Peter Siegel, a scientist at the California Institute of Technology, explained, “You probably could find very common materials that you could wrap around you that would effectively obscure things.”
Source: USA Today
Opinion & Analysis: Weighing privacy versus national security
William Saletan of Slate commented on the privacy issue in March 2007 when the TSA first began using the technology: “Are you ready to get naked for your country?” In an age when the Internet is king, Saletan is wary of the TSA’s ability to stand by their word of keeping the pictures private: “If we’re going to be ogled, at least protect us from being Googled.”
Source: Slate
The ACLU published a press release in October 2007 expressing its opposition to the airport body scanners. “We urge TSA to reconsider using this detection system and to consider others that are less invasive, less costly and less damaging to privacy.”
Source: American Civil Liberties Union
Related Topic: ‘U.S. tries to speed up airport screening by sorting passengers’
The TSA is trying to expedite the airport screening process by providing three different lanes based on the passenger’s perceived speed and knowledge about the rules and procedures: black diamond for experts, a blue square for intermediates, and a green circle for families and the confounded. But, as the International Herald Tribune points out, “People typically opt for the shortest line, and everybody thinks they are an expert.”
Source: International Herald Tribune
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