I disagree. Identity does not matter for physical security, it only matters for investigative purposes - to find bad guys. TSA isn't there to find bad guys, they're there to keep weapons, explosives, and incendiaries off planes. Identifying wanted people doesn't factor into it, only identifying stuff that goes boom or snik.

You're missing the point, entirely. You're using the "it only costs you a little" defense for governmental overreach.

It doesn't matter what it costs, it doesn't matter whether it takes you 1/4 second of your time or costs you no money or effort. What matters is that it is not TSA's job. They are specifically forbidden from conducting criminal investigations. I don't give a rodent's posterior what the potential theoretical benefits might be one time out of a gozillion, what I do care about is that government agents do not violate people's rights under color of authority for flimsy, blatantly untrue reasons.

How many human traffickers has TSA uncovered with Say Your Name?

Funny you should ask.

https://www.tsa.gov/about/employee-s...an-trafficking

I have to think the number is zero. Or darned close to it. We all know that if they did, they'd broadcast it loud and clear. The link in the post above doesn't claim any. The only case I found (not claiming an exhaustive search) was when a passenger got off a plane, ran into a TSA officer walking through the airport, and announced to her face that she was being trafficked.

That's zero cases out of 800,000,000 screenings per year for 20+ years.

I hope that TSA employee ignored the trafficking victim because helping her would be some kind of invasion of your civil rights. Oh the humanity!

are you guys saying tsa agent at the airport that checks your boarding pass have some of you adult traveler to say their name?
I know they have asked my 10 years old child to say his name every time.

The response will be “OMG the TSA is molesting your son!!!” 🙄 /s

It is a bit of hyperbole, or at least inaccurate, to say TSA is "...specifically prohibited from conducting criminal investigations."

I agree 100% with your sentiments that we should not ever let the government violate our rights. It is absolutely a slippery slope that just gets more and more slippery every time we let the government get away with it.

Conducting an administrative search is not the same thing as conducting a criminal investigation. While we might disagree with the law and the courts, both have long established and upheld that TSA's activities at the passenger screening checkpoints (PSCs) are administrative searches and are not criminal investigations.

You and I certainly disagree with Congress, but Congress believes identity is part of physical security and has therefore mandated TSA to verify the identity of individuals on commercial aircraft. TSOs are the front-line public-facing employees who carry out that mandated order to verify identity via administrative search, part of which is "say your name."

The TSA has employees in lots of different job classifications. Some TSA employees are actually, truly, law enforcement officers and some are criminal investigators. Both are authorized by law to conduct criminal investigations and refer potential charges to a US Attorney.

The vast majority of TSA employees are Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) who are not law enforcement officers nor criminal investigators and are not authorized to conduct criminal investigations or otherwise perform criminal law enforcement activities.

TSOs are authorized to conduct administrative searches (with which we are all familiar at the PSCs). If a TSO becomes aware of a potential violation of criminal law during an admin search, the employee is to turn that information over to the relevant AHJ which then conducts an actual criminal investigation. In most cases a state/local airport police department will be the AHJ - the FBI might also be the AHJ. But in a very few cases (usually related to TSA employees or contractors, the TSA itself will be the AHJ and its LEOs or Criminal Investigators will conduct the criminal investigation.

Don’t we make fun of MAGA and their conspiracy theories? “But muh privacy” is too close to that.

Do you honestly think you should be able to travel anywhere by air or land and never identity who you are? And if you have to at any point, it means the collapse of civilization as we know it?

Try interviewing for a job and not telling them who you are. “But muh rights!” Oh guess what, some GOVERNMENT jobs require both identification AND a security investigation.

🙄

Can you demonstrate just where Congress mandated for TSA to verify identity? I'm asking for specific language or document reference. Even if TSA has such mandate I hardly see how "Say Your Name" accomplishes any such mandate. A person with resources to obtain passable ID would not get tripped up by such games. I'd also suggest that any group posing a threat to aviation safety would be unlikely to be engaging in human trafficking.

The Aviation and Transportation Security Act, Pub. L. 107-71, § 109(a)(7) (November 19, 2001) (codified at 49 U.S.C. § 114 note).

see also 49 CFR Part 1540.5

from TSA:
1.4 What specific legal authorities/arrangements/agreements define the collection of information?
TSA has broad authority under 49 U.S.C. § 114(f) to assess threats and threat information related to transportation and to plan and execute such actions as may be appropriate to address threats to transportation.


I am not aware of any of the directives and authorities given by Congress to DHS/TSA being rescinded or scaled back.

You might not see it, but others, with more influence than you and I, do see it (say your name) as helping accomplish the mandate. You know, multi-layered approach and all.

Suggestions are like opinions, everyone can make/have them. :) But I agree, why do we care "who" gets on a plane as long as we can be sure there are not WEI on the plane?

I have no problem identifying myself to an airline or an employer (even if that employer is the government) for what amounts to a private transaction. But identifying myself to the government to be able to travel is quite a stretch from that. ID is not security. S:confused:mehow we've left that basic fact behind. TSA should screen me to make sure I have no weapons / bombs and let me proceed.

I had a nice long response but lost it somehow. I seriously doubt that the writers of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act envisioned what that act has created. I also think that any group attempting to attack by using commercial aviation as a weapon would be engaged in Human Trafficking or fooled by TSA's "Say your Name" game. I'd have a lot more confidence in TSA if they could reliably find things like bullets (Turks & Caicos) rather than spending resources doing questionable security actions. As things stand I have little confidence in TSA's overall program.

My suggestions for improving airport security.

1) Buy better screening machines.

2) Pay for better, longer training.

3) All passengers are forced to disrobe and suitcases are emptied.

4) The military is in charge of airport security.

That makes things much better.

Do you have anything to contribute to the discussion other than mockery? Perhaps you'd like to list what actual, tangible benefit to aviation security you see from the say your name requirement?

Do you have anything to contribute besides paranoia?

Btw, human trafficking is a thing and people sometimes go through airports. But if you don’t care, ok I get that.

Are you willing to present identification in an airport? Do you expect to fly anonymously with no security? I still do not see what the problem is here. Do you know why we have airport security?