[Infowarrior] - Standards Suggested for Airline ID Card

[Richard Forno]

Standards Suggested for Airline ID Card
http://www.salon.com/wire/ap/archive.html?wire=D8K9HBBG0.html
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September 21,2006 | WASHINGTON -- The Transportation Security Administration
on Thursday announced standards for an ID card that frequent fliers can buy
to get through security lines faster at airports.

The announcement comes nearly five years after Congress first authorized the
program, two years after the TSA first tested it and three months after it
was supposed to start.

The public has two weeks to comment on the standards, which are only in
draft form.

The program, called "Registered Traveler," would establish airport-security
fast lanes for those who pay a fee, pass a government background check and
submit 10 fingerprints.

In addition to the annual membership fee, which is likely to be about $100,
the TSA estimates a background check will cost another $100.

The standards cover information security, enrollment, verification and
privacy, the TSA said.

A year ago, the TSA stopped testing the program except in Orlando, Fla.

TSA chief Kip Hawley decided to turn the program over to the private sector.
Airport participation is voluntary.

Hawley has said the program isn't a top priority for the agency, but it has
been important to private companies eager to profit from selling
identification cards.

Companies such as Verified Identity Pass, started by media entrepreneur
Steven Brill, seek to install a system of private security passes at
airports across the nation.

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On the Net:

Transportation Security Administration: http://www.tsa.gov