Pic of the Week: TSA Cupping
I’ve always thought that terrorists must find some of the attempts to thwart attacks quite amusing, Nudiescanners and TSA groping included. I recently stumbled across this picture and thought “this is probably not far from the truth”.
Either way, I found it funny so thought I’d share.
TSA Body Scanner Missed 12-inch Razor Blades
Mythbusters’ Adam Savage recently went through a TSA checkpoint and body scanner, and once on the plane realized he had two 12″ razor blades in his jacket pocket. I’ll let the man tell you himself, but I love his quote: “WTF TSA?”. Clearly the screening agent was focusing on Adam’s myth-busting junk.
Privacy fail and security fail two-in-one. Security theater++
Free TSA Crotch-Massages
Ohh boy do I look forward to my next flight out of the U.S!
Barry looks like he’s enjoying himself…
[Updated] Now also available in Pedobear flavor! See also: TSA Cupping.
Gizmodo Leaks Body Scanner Images
The backlash against the use of body scanner technology, that I reported on recently, rages on. Following an investigation into the use of body scanners, Gizmodo found that US Marshals saved 35,000 scans, and have leaked some of the images they were able to obtain. The image below is one of those images.
The resolution of these images, taken with a Gen 2 millimeter wave scanner, is extremely low compared to the more advanced (and potentially harmful) ‘naked’ x-ray backscatter technology. The point being highlighted by Gizmodo is not the privacy-invading nature of body scanners, but instead they reveal how images are being stored on the machines despite the TSA assuring everyone that body scanners “cannot store, print, transmit or save the image, and the image is automatically deleted from the system after it is cleared by the remotely located security officer.” Clearly isn’t entirely true (surprised?).
I think it points out the particular flaw with blindly allowing governments to implement these and other kinds of surveillance, tracking, and monitoring mechanisms. It’s fine when you trust the government to abide by a set of acceptable rules, and most people say they have nothing to hide (which I agree with in most cases). The issue is that the way those monitoring mechanisms, and personal (borderline private) information about you, are used can be changed at any time, regardless of what the ‘rules’ are meant to be (and laws can be changed – consider post 9/11). If, for whatever reason, a government somewhere down the line decides they want to exert more control over its citizens, the internet, etc, they will just have to turn to the plethora of technologies that are currently in the process of being implemented.
As travelers we’re being treated with more and more suspicion, and people are now starting to put their foot down. Too little too late? Just recently, John Tyner was thrown out of an airport for opting-out of a body scan, and then refusing to the new TSA ‘groin-touching’ pat-down.
The difficult question is how do we allow governments to implement essential and appropriate security mechanisms, in such a way that does not impede the freedom and civil liberties of individuals? In my opinion, non-invasive passive scanning and detection methods would be one way to go, such as more chemical/explosive detection technology. Ultimately if someone wants to get something on board, it is much easier to get it through security in your carry-on than on your person. Obfuscating dangerous items such as non-obvious blades or even explosives into already complex elements such as laptops would probably pass security checks if done properly. And don’t forget that there are many plastic or ceramic-based tools and weapons that can be just as dangerous as knives. At this point I should probably point out that I’m particularly resentful of the pitiful little knives they give us on flights nowadays.
The security of the internet is a similar story. Mechanisms that give governments exclusive control, such as the proposed Internet kill-switch and blacklist, are not the answer, and somewhere down the line will probably be used for more harm than good.
Note: The image of the lady above is not an actual body scan, and is simply there for illustrative purposes to (aesthetically) demonstrate where we’re headed. ;)
Man Thrown Out of Airport for Refusing Pat-down
Hot on the heels of my last post about body scanners and invasive pat-downs, John Tyner apparently decided to opt-out and told the TSA agent at San Diego airport (SAN) that he did not want his groin to be touched. Specifically his words were: “If you touch my junk, I’ll have you arrested” – which is a phrase we should all say to a TSA agent at least once in our lives (women that includes you). To cut a long story short, the situation was escalated and resulted in him being thrown out of the airport. He then went home and posted about the incident on his blog, along with videos that were surreptitiously recorded by his cell-phone. Drawn-out but worth a watch listen (unless you like watching a ceiling move):
When asked by his father-in-law why he was being so obstinate about opposing this encroachment on his civil liberties, John replies “if I don’t do it, nobody will”. It’s nice to see someone have the junk to stand up for what they believe in, especially if they’re willing to miss a flight because of it. My guess is he really didn’t want to fly with his father-in-law.
Funny thing is that after being ‘thrown-out’, he was told that he couldn’t leave the airport or face a civil lawsuit and a $10,000 fine if he didn’t come back and finish the screening. Clearly John didn’t want the screening, so at that point I’m wondering whether he might have to live within the confines of the airport for the rest of his life. Thankfully he told the TSA to “bring it” and just left. You tell ’em John.
In related news: BoingBoing suggests this book on how to explain to your child why they will be felt up by a random stranger in a uniform the next time you fly. I hope they use baby oil…
Source: Network World
[Related] Body Scanner Images Leaked!
Airport Body Scanners: Questionable Security and Privacy
The idea of naked images of children aside, something about this picture is particularly disturbing to me. I don’t know if it’s the criminal-esque ‘hands-up’ pose the kids are forced to adopt, the big yellow radiation warning sign, the fact that anyone on the other side of the machine has a clear view of the screen, or that the kid in front appears to have taken a bit too much radiation to the head. Ok, I jest with that last one, but there is something inherently wrong with this image. Read more
Non-Security and Civil Liberties
Two Miami photojournalists, Carlos Miller and Charles Ledford, attempted to enter the Metrorail system to take pictures of stations and trains, but were instead banned for life from the transit system. Despite getting confirmation from the Head of Security of Miami-Dade Metro that photographing the transit for non-commercial purposes was allowed, the rent-a-cops on the ground that guard each station insisted that photography was banned due to “terrorism reasons”. In the end the police were called as the pair refused to stop recording video outside the station (a public area).
Apart from the obvious futility of banning photography in what is essentially a publicly-accessible environment (from a security perspective), what irks me most is law enforcement’s ignorance of the actual laws regarding photography both in that transit system and in public areas. We all know that anyone taking pictures of a transit system for the purposes of “terrorism” (or any other illegal act) would most likely do so regardless of restrictions, and would most probably do so in an inconspicuous way. In some ways this reminds me of the a message issued by the UK government a couple years ago, encouraging the public to report anyone taking pictures of CCTV installations, as this could be deemed ‘suspicious activity’.
The video below, filmed by Carlos Miller, shows the pair’s attempts at entering the transit system.
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