Yesterday I used the TSA Pre-Check lane at a major U.S. airport, and as I went through the metal detector, the "random beep" went off. Fine. I'm pointed to the millimeter wave scanner, and I politely indicate I'm opting out. The agent hollers "Female Opt Out!" about a dozen times while I patiently wait. He periodically apologizes for the delay.

Meanwhile, my bags are sitting on the conveyor belt on the other side of security, having gone through the x-ray machine. I see two problems.

1. Any idiot could grab my bags. Goodbye wallet, goodbye ID. Not TSA's problem, so I understand why they don't really care about this.

2. Bigger problem. If I really were trying to conceal anything, anyone who was traveling with me but wasn't selected for random screening could just grab my bags and head to the gate. Once I clear my secondary screening (which would now be easier and quicker, since there are no bags to inspect!), we would just reconnect at the gate and I'd have all my stuff back, minus the obligation to have it go through the secondary screening by TSA.

I haven't actually tried this, but it strikes me as a big gaping hole in the security process. What am I missing?