There's been some indignity in the blogosphere recently over the dignity-less backscatter (or millimeter wave) body imaging machines the TSA has been using in US airports since 2006, as rumors circulate that passengers will soon be forced to let the TSA see 'em naked. Flyers are frequently quick to believe the worst of the TSA, given the TSA's track record of making decisions based on what everyone will hate the most unpopular decisions (the agency has managed to tie the IRS in unpopularity), but this one's not quite true.
For the moment, what's changed in the whole TSA strip search machine thing is that the TSA decided, in a change of policy, that the machines would become the primary means of screening and replace traditional (and formerly primary means of screening) walkthrough metal detectors in six US airports in February, and the New York Times is reporting that the TSA now has plans to install a whole lot more of 'em in place of metal detectors. In airports where the machines will become the primary means of screening, one will still be able to opt not to transmit images of one's naked body to TSA agents via millimeter wave, but one will then get the wand. And a serious pat down (which, in my experience, can be quite intimate). Learn more:
- What is the TSA's Backscatter / Millimeter Wave Technology?
- Which Airports Have Full Body Scanners?
- COMMENT: Would You Walk Through a Full Body Scanner at the Airport?
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