Originally Posted by
studentff
I'm sure you've heard this before, but this sort of hair-splitting is maddening to traveling citizens who actually experience front-of-hand genital contact, repeated "incidental" back of hand genital contact, or whatever else you are being vague about, regardless of the words TSA uses to describe what they claim they are going to do. I'm sure TSA spends lots of $ on PR hacks to identify borderline-correct euphemisms like "groin" instead of "genital," and I'm sure they spend a lot of time indoctrinating employees on those words and their goodness, but it does not change the passenger experience.
This is reminiscent of TSA's insistence on claiming that TSA does not confiscate items that are barred from passing the checkpoint and that passengers "voluntarily surrender" these items. No passenger cares about that distinction when they are facing missing a flight, have no parked car to which to return the item even if they had time, etc. But TSA loved to tout that and I'm sure loved to indoctrinate TSA employees on the benevolence of "voluntarily surrender."
The video you link to, by the way, is maddening to any traveler who identifies a "sensitive/painful" area to a screener only to actually experience having that area screened more aggressively and painfully than normal because the screener uses the identification of a painful area as an excuse the traveler may be hiding something there.
I will state again,
if you experience something other than what the video outlines, then you should file a complaint locally, ask for an STSO or TSM, or file a complaint at one of the Official TSA sites. The only way that the organization can follow up on things like this, is if they know about it.
The problem is, the passenger voluntarily surrenders the item. TSA does not confiscate, the individual is supposed to give the passenger options with the prohibited items (with some limitations on things like WEI). The regulations for WEI have pretty much not changed since before I came to TSA , and the 3.4-1-1 rules have been around for many years as well. The rules on realistic replica items (that simulate WEI) have not changed since before I came to TSA. These are the things that people are given options on daily. These rules have been published and in place for more than a decade in many cases. When a passenger brings these items into the checkpoint, they are still afforded the opportunity to take the item and send it to themselves, put it in a vehicle, give it to a friend or find some other way to dispose of it - voluntarily surrendering the item to TSA is the last resort.
In terms of identified sensitive areas, the TSOs are supposed to clear those areas, but we are also supposed to work with the passenger, and be conscious of the pain it can cause. There is a fine line there, and it should be something that TSOs pay close attention to. If this is not the case in your experience -
please file a complaint with TSA, either locally or at one of the Official sites.
At
this link, you can find the sections of TSA.gov that allow you to file
complaints, positive experiences, or coordinate for you or family members that have
special needs. There are also sections about contacting the media group, and even finding out about TSA Precheck if you are interested. I do not want you to think that I am brushing you off, we just have differing opinions on certain things - I want you and any other passenger to be able to effectively file complaints, compliments and to travel with as little challenge as possible. In order to improve on that experience, we need folks to file these complaints and comments, so we can address them through proper channels.