TSA: Whole-body scanners to replace metal detectors
http://current.newsweek.com/budgettravel/2009/04/in_a_shift_the_transportation.html
In a change of plans, the TSA says it will now replace the walk-through metal detectors at airport checkpoints with whole-body imaging machines. Already at six airports nationwide, all passengers are passing through the high-tech machines. (The machines are available at 12 other airports for secondary screenings only.)
Coming this autumn...
More about these virtual strip searches here:
http://current.newsweek.com/budgettravel/2008/10/is_the_tsa_violating_your_priv.html
I think I've been through one of those machines before but they didn't tell me I was being electronically strip searched. I don't see how this technology can be healthy for frequent travelers -- not to mention the privacy issues.
The 4th Amendement to the Constitution is supposed to protect against unreasonable searches:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Flying on an airplane isn't "probable cause".
15 years
Manchester airport just got their first strip search machine:
http://news.scotsman.com/science/Airport-Xray-machine--reveals.5727215.jp
The full-body scanner, being tested at Manchester Airport, also shows breast enlargements, false limbs, piercings, and a clear outline of passengers' private parts. Travellers can refuse to undergo the virtual strip search at Terminal 2, opting for the traditional "pat down" search instead.
I'm willing to bet that it will be mandatory eventually... :)
15 years
Well now all the voyeurs and peeping toms will have a job that they can apply for that they would be fully qualified for. Kind of creepy!
15 years
When the images are so detailed that you almost have to censor them, you've gone too far. I'm guessing you have to be 18+ to work for the TSA then...
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