[Infowarrior] - The Airport Scanner Scam: Trading Dignity for False Security

[Richard Forno]

(via IP)


> Stephen H. Unger
> Professor Emeritus
> Computer Science and Electrical Engineering
> Columbia University
> ............
> 
> The latest high-tech weapons in the war on terror are back-scatter
> X-ray and millimeter-wave scanners, intended to determine if
> passengers are carrying concealed weapons or explosives by generating
> images of naked bodies that can be inspected by security people. We
> are assured by the manufacturers and the Transportation Security
> Administration that these devices will do the job without harming
> us. Travelers can opt out of the scanning process only by submitting
> to full-body manual searches that include agents laying hands on
> private parts. Various experts have raised serious questions about
> both the efficacy and the safety of this process. An even bigger
> question is whether the dangers it addresses really justify such
> drastic measures. I have explored this matter in an article entitled,
> "Land of the Free: Frantic Feds Feel-up Fliers to Foil Fumbling Foes",
> accessible from
> http://www1.cs.columbia.edu/~unger/myBlog/endsandmeansblog.html