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Old Dec 29, 2009, 8:52 am
  #91  
 
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Originally Posted by GUWonder
But they detect explosives that strip searching machines do not.
WBI's detect the anomoly. Dogs have a significant false/positive ratio.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 8:59 am
  #92  
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Originally Posted by TSORon
Because there are things dogs cannot detect, they cant work 24x7, they are only as good as their training, and they have a fairly high miss rate.
So in other words they are TSOs.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 9:16 am
  #93  
 
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Originally Posted by TSORon
When I was in the military dogs were certified at 70% or higher.
Ok. What's the rate for WBI technicians? (Otherwise, we don't have a point of comparison.)
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 9:17 am
  #94  
 
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Originally Posted by jkhuggins
Ok. What's the rate for WBI technicians? (Otherwise, we don't have a point of comparison.)
Silly Comrade, that information is SSI...
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 9:19 am
  #95  
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Originally Posted by Trollkiller
I don't have time to research this right now, but we need to find out where the Nude-O-Scopes are manufactured and in what states do the manufacturer have a substantial presence.
TSORon has kindly provided a link from Bloomberg.

Originally Posted by TSORon
<SNIP>
More here
Companies such as OSI Systems Inc., Smiths Group Plc, Safran SA and L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. may benefit from any requirement that airports get more security equipment. London-based Smiths is the world’s biggest maker of airport scanners. Safran, based in Paris, is the world leader in biometric technologies, such as fingerprint scanners. New York- based L-3 also makes scanners for airport use.

L-3 has “developed a more sophisticated system that could prevent smuggling of almost anything on the body,” said Howard Rubel, an analyst at Jefferies & Co., who has a “hold” rating on the stock. “Speed and privacy issues have slowed its introduction.”

Jennifer Barton, a spokeswoman for New York-based L-3, didn’t respond to a phone call seeking comment.

L-3 rose $1.17, or 1.4 percent, to $86.80 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading yesterday. That was the highest closing price since October 2008. OSI jumped $2.45, or 11 percent, to $24.47 in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The percentage gain was the biggest since Jan. 29.

OSI’s Rapiscan unit makes machines that can detect liquids and other potential explosives beneath passengers’ clothing. In October, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration placed an order valued at $25 million for Rapiscan’s imaging equipment, the Hawthorne, California-based company said.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 9:29 am
  #96  
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Originally Posted by TSORon
Because there are things dogs cannot detect, they cant work 24x7, they are only as good as their training, and they have a fairly high miss rate.
Sounds about the same as TSA employees.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 9:36 am
  #97  
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Last 2 paragraphs of the Bloomberg article:

Using technology for every threat may cost more and reduce risk less than measures such as increasing visa reviews in “high-risk” countries, said David Schanzer, director of the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security at Duke University and the University of North Carolina.

“Every time we have an episode, we should not rush to judgment and spend billions of dollars deploying the newfangled technology that will meet a very narrow sliver of the threat,” said Schanzer. “That’s not a satisfying response that politicians can make. Politicians feel an urgent need to respond to the threats today.”

Last edited by doober; Dec 29, 2009 at 9:37 am Reason: spelling
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 3:53 pm
  #98  
 
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Safety of wallet

Let's say that I accept the TSA's argument that in a WBI screening my privacy is protected, which I'm not ready to do. Where are my wallet, laptop, etc. during the screening, and should I worry about getting them back intact?
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 4:13 pm
  #99  
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Originally Posted by rove312
Let's say that I accept the TSA's argument that in a WBI screening my privacy is protected, which I'm not ready to do. Where are my wallet, laptop, etc. during the screening, and should I worry about getting them back intact?
Darn good questions. As things are now our possessions are out of direct control. As I understand TSA doesn't even want wallets in a pocket.

Procedures will have to be modified to protect property before I will willingly submit to WBI screening.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 4:50 pm
  #100  
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Originally Posted by TSORon
Calls for Full-Body Screening Devices Grow After Terror Attempt

"Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- A suspected terrorist’s attempt to blow up a U.S. airliner may override privacy concerns and intensify a push for full-body scanning equipment at airports.

U.S. officials charged a 23-year-old Nigerian man with trying to blow up Northwest Flight 253 as it prepared to land in Detroit on Christmas Day. President Barack Obama said yesterday he ordered a thorough review of the episode and called for new scrutiny of screening policies and technologies.

Metal detectors currently used to screen passengers wouldn’t have found the explosive allegedly carried aboard by the suspect, said former Federal Aviation Administration security chief Billie Vincent. Only more sophisticated devices such as low-level X-rays and millimeter-wave technology would work, Vincent said. "

More here
If you keep doing that you'll go blind.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 5:24 pm
  #101  
 
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All we ask when people go through the wbi is for them to take everything out of her pockets. It's not that hard. You are allowed to hold wallets, coins, cash and whatnot when going through, in you hands as you go through. If you cannot see your items, or are worried about them when going through, be sure to push them all the way inside the x-ray. Then once you go through, ask a TSO if they can keep an eye on your belongings. I can't fathom a reason why a TSO would refuse, other than they're lazy or a jackass.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 6:16 pm
  #102  
 
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Originally Posted by senseker
I can't fathom a reason why a TSO would refuse, other than they're lazy or a jackass.
And we all know TSOs are never either.
Sorry, you sound like a perfectly reasonable person, however a great many of your coworkers are anything but. These forums abound with first hand experience contrary to what you are saying. In fact, one yesterday in the mega-thread on the new measures talks about a TSO actually stealing credit card numbers from someone's wallet, and subsequent fraudulent authorizations on said card. (In full view of the pax and a supervisor and above the pax's protests).
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 6:27 pm
  #103  
 
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Originally Posted by pjoalfa
And we all know TSOs are never either.
Sorry, you sound like a perfectly reasonable person, however a great many of your coworkers are anything but. These forums abound with first hand experience contrary to what you are saying. In fact, one yesterday in the mega-thread on the new measures talks about a TSO actually stealing credit card numbers from someone's wallet, and subsequent fraudulent authorizations on said card. (In full view of the pax and a supervisor and above the pax's protests).
Thankyou. And yea, I've heard some horror stories about TSO's at other airports, but I haven't heard of any real bad TSO's at my airport in quite awhile The last incident I remember of a TSO doing stealing was back in january of '08 when this guy was stealing stuff from our own breakrooms.
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 7:25 pm
  #104  
 
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Originally Posted by senseker
Then once you go through [the WBI], ask a TSO if they can keep an eye on your belongings.
Passengers shouldn't have to ask. It should be part of the SOP for a passenger's belongings to be in view of the passenger at all times, without having to specifically "ask" for this great "favor".
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Old Dec 29, 2009, 8:09 pm
  #105  
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Originally Posted by TSORon
When I was in the military dogs were certified at 70% or higher.

The dog and the handler work as a team, the dog can do absolutely everything correct per its training and the handler can still miss it. But if the dog misses the item then there is no way that the handler can tell.
That's still a much higher detection rate than we have with TSA currently. @:-)

Originally Posted by senseker
Thankyou. And yea, I've heard some horror stories about TSO's at other airports, but I haven't heard of any real bad TSO's at my airport in quite awhile The last incident I remember of a TSO doing stealing was back in january of '08 when this guy was stealing stuff from our own breakrooms.
Working for a contractor, you have something TSA doesn't: accountability.

Now tell me, when that person was caught, how long did it take to can him?

And similarly, if a screener isn't performing up to snuff, what happens? Do they still have a job and get retrained repeatedly, or are they let go?

If the answer to both questions is quickly and let go, then your organization is clearly different than TSA.

I can tell you that working as a federal contractor, if my customer doesn't like what I'm doing on my contract, I can be gone that day. Govies just get tucked off in a corner and forgotten about.

Originally Posted by jkhuggins
Passengers shouldn't have to ask. It should be part of the SOP for a passenger's belongings to be in view of the passenger at all times, without having to specifically "ask" for this great "favor".
Yeah, like the great favor they did for me by helping me look for my laptop that someone walked off with when I was in the penalty box for refusing the WBI.

Last edited by Cholula; Jan 11, 2010 at 9:20 am Reason: Merging multiple, successive posts
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