Millimeter wave - a virtual strip search by any other name...

Now playing Tulsa but coming soon to a TSA checkpoint screen near you - your virtually naked body:

The scanners aim to close a loophole by finding non-metallic weapons such as plastic and liquid explosives, which the TSA considers a major threat. The machines raise privacy concerns because their images reveal outlines of private body parts.

“We’re getting closer and closer to a required strip-search to board an airplane,” said Barry Steinhardt of the American Civil Liberties Union.

Privacy advocate Melissa Ngo fears that passengers won’t understand that the scanners take vivid images that screeners view. - USA Today 

The random travelers selected for the scans in Tulsa  can opt out - for now - but the option is a human pat-down. 

Comments

[Buzz]

What you didn't mention from the aritcle, and I think is very important:

1) anyone who refuses to go through the machine will have to go through the WTMD AND get a pat down. (You have just been labeled a 'difficult" passenger because you won't follow orders.)

2) This machine costs $170,000 and takes longer than the $10,000 WTMD they use now.

Yell "terrorism" and the American people start shaking in their boots. To heck with the Constitution as long as the government keeps us safe from terrorists. We'll give up our rights, answer all personal questions, allow the government to start secret files on us as long as they protect us from those big bad terrorists.

Our forefathers are turning over in their graves.

[JB]

I believe I prefer the Israeli approach which relies more on intelligence and common sense, and less on technology. We probably lack both the intelligence and common sense to pull the this approach off.

[Paula S]

Well, if ever there was an incentive to lose weight......

The only pro to this and the best reason going.....no one is going to get away with smuggling weapons etc on their body (inside the body is a different matter). the cons are numerous, every picture tells a story. I would hope the screeners are the souls of discretion. Unfortunately they don't screen the cleaning crews who have every opportunity to hide weapons etc on the plane before the passengers board and what about baggage handlers? If they're going to do this, they should do it properly and thoroughly.

I know I moan about the security line ups and nit picking bag searches (I suffered that last trip, at Heathrow) but in reality it makes me feel a whole lot better knowing they're making it more difficult for potential terrorists to kill us in the air.

[Till]

Here is a link to an interesting discussion on the subject on flyertalk
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-safety-security/923013-body-scanning-pat-downs-your-only-choice.html

[K-eM]

Well, they just ensured that Tulsa is going to see a drop in use. At least by my team. I'd rather have a pat down than have a leering TSA looking at my private parts. At least a pat down has to be done with respect and you can stick up for yourself.

[Eric]

They use this in Denver, and I've gone through it. No big deal. They make it very clear that, at least here, (1) the people seeing the images are at a remote location, so they cannot see you and "leer", and (2) the images are not stored.

[Till]

The biggest problem is that we cannot be sure that the images are not stored and are not used for biometric recognition. In fact, they could make it so that the image is stored and transfered to another location without the TSO knwoing of that. I don't believe them one second.

[Steve]

This thing is 17 times more expensive than the metal detector and takes twice as long to process a person.

It adds very little to true "security". There are plenty of things on the plane that could be turned into weapons.

Do they even bother to screen the cargo they put on planes, yet?

I see it as just more "Security Theater". It's an opportunity to show that they're "doing something", plus a really great opportunity to enrich another contractor. Plus the added bonus of one more opportunity to condition people to their "authority".

No, I won't go through one. I don't trust these people.

[Eric]

While I agree, at least in part, with Till and Steve, I don't particularly care if there is some sort of conspiracy to secret away the images. I'm no expert in this area, but I don't think body geometry is a reliable biometric marker. Things like retinas, finger prints, eye separation, etc are far more precise and standardized.

[Eric]

Personally, my biggest gripe with any of these security systems is that they are not used on everyone. Picking people at random (or not at random) seems to defeat the purpose.

[Larry]

My biggest objection to the TSA in general is that all its efforts are aimed at what happened in the past. For example: box cutters are used to hijack planes so now you can't take on your swiss army knife, A guy tries to light a bomb in his shoe so now we have to take off our shoes for examination, liquids that can be combined into a bomb are carried on board so now we have the 3-1-1. It seems to me that this is similar to fighting a present war with the tactics of the last one. Why can't we be proactive instead of reactive?