Newsstand - Frequent Fliers Sign Up to Ease Security Checks

By REUTERS

Published: September 5, 2004


WASHINGTON, Sept. 4 (Reuters) - About 10,000 people have enrolled in a test program for speeding passengers through airport security checkpoints, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said on Friday.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/05/politics/05screen.html

"Passengers who clear the screening process receive a card that is scanned each time they check in for a flight. The card enables them to proceed to a special security line, exempting them from a second round of security checks unless they cause suspicion or set off alarms."
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I'm participating in this at LAX. Fact is the "special security line" is the normal elite line on the west side of Terminal 7. Once you proceed through this line, you are intermixed with everyone else. A stamp on your boarding card from the kiosk you run your "Trusted Traveler ID Card" through, needs to be shown at the metal detector, if you are flagged for secondary.

The program at LAX needs fine-tuning. For those who qualify to use the elite line and wouldn't be subject to secondary search due to their boarding pass being flagged, this now adds delay time. BTW, I participated in a survey conducted by the TSA's contractor last week. My answers to the individual conducting it were not complementary to the program as it is currently designed. Afterwards I asked the individual if my answers were in sync with those already received. Answer: "Yes, almost identical".

"Passengers who clear the screening process receive a card that is scanned each time they check in for a flight. The card enables them to proceed to a special security line, exempting them from a second round of security checks unless they cause suspicion or set off alarms."
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I'm participating in this at LAX. Fact is the "special security line" is the normal elite line on the west side of Terminal 7. Once you proceed through this line, you are intermixed with everyone else. A stamp on your boarding card from the kiosk you run your "Trusted Traveler ID Card" through, needs to be shown at the metal detector, if you are flagged for secondary.

The program at LAX needs fine-tuning. For those who qualify to use the elite line and wouldn't be subject to secondary search due to their boarding pass being flagged, this now adds delay time. BTW, I participated in a survey conducted by the TSA's contractor last week. My answers to the individual conducting it were not complementary to the program as it is currently designed. Afterwards I asked the individual if my answers were in sync with those already received. Answer: "Yes, almost identical".

Yep. I did that survey last week also and gave the same feed back as above. And what is with the green ink that smears all over everything? Couldn't they get a better stamp?

So, you've handed over all kinds of personal data, including a medical record (your iris-scan) to a "private contractor" (who will eventually need to sell that data to keep their bottom line afloat) and all you get is added delay and green ink all over your shirt/jacket/hands?

Bahh-bahh! :rolleyes:

HeHateY,

In my business I have to agree to background checks, on a pretty regular basis. They are done by governmental agencies, psuedo-governmental entities, business partners, and clients. Fingerprints are often required (all ten). The iris scan is not currently used in my industry, though.

While I generally subscribe to libertarian thought, I am hypocritical when it comes to making a living (in the industry I have conciously chosen). Most of my traveling is a mandatory part of my job, BTW.

Craig

P.S. As an OT aside regarding medical record privacy. The HIPAA act gives me the willies.

I think what HeHateY was implying that you had to give up all this data just to earn a privellege many of us who fly 50K miles or more a year have as a matter of that status.

And the people who probably would join this program probably already fly 50K+ miles a year and already enjoy the "privellege", making the program superfluous to them.

What would happen if I signed up and don't pass? Would I then be subject to extra scrutiny every time I went through security?

Sylvia

What would happen if I signed up and don't pass? Would I then be subject to extra scrutiny every time I went through security?

Sylvia

I guess it depends on what they find. The successor to CAPPS is supposed to be able to model your "threat level" and categorize you, appropriately, but I suppose if your criminal or financial records were dire enough, the authorities might configure CAPPS to always send you through Secondary Screening by assigning you an SSSS classification.

What would happen if I signed up and don't pass? Would I then be subject to extra scrutiny every time I went through security?


That's a great question, Sylvia. We definitely have not had any assurances from the TSA that registered traveler applicants will NOT be added to bad guy lists if they fail to check out. And since they're trying to sell this thing to the public, I'd assume that they only fail to give us that reassurance because they do indeed plan to put people on the bad guy lists depending on how the background checks go. And considering that TSA has released zero information about what they're looking for, what kinds of things would result in a rejection, et cetera, I'd be very very afraid if I were you. I know that the first installment of this, in Minnesota(?) had only 2000 or so applicants and they rejected some people, so the rejection rate isn't vanishingly small.