It is really frightening in what speed the TSA folks come up with new ways to embarrass themselves and to hassle people. With this black light, magnifying nonsense you might catch the 20 year old college kid that used it faked ID to get beer but not someone with serious bad intentions.

What a nonsense!!!

The OP should have immediately called for a supervisor and then escalated from there.

TSA is not exempt from the Privacy Act notification requirements when they ask for your personal information - they totally ignore it. But legally they are NOT exempt. They count on pax not having the time to demand notification or being afraid to demand notification.

As I understand it, where TSA says it is exempt from the Privacy Act is when an individual requests to be informed of exactly what is done with his information. Apparently, TSA has taken the position that they are not required to respond to such a request.

I would absolutely NOT have given them a credit card. Of all things! With that information they can go shopping on the internet!

A credit card is not a valid ID!

People don't let them do this to you!

Totally agree - we, the traveling public, are the ones who need to stop this since our politicians are not going to do it.

Are they doing the extra screening maybe to make the case of the standardized ID that will be issued once the REAL ID thing kicks in? If they get the sheep angered by all of the extra screening, extra lines, extra BS and say that if they had REAL ID this could be averted, people will get in line to get this official stamp.
If only there was a way to track people that fly frequently....maybe issuing official flyer armbands that detail which airlines we fly or possibly put symbols on there to denote FF status. This will be the next step.

Should we switch to passports for our ID when flying?

Sounds a lot like something a particular government tried about 60-70 years ago ...

This episode is jut like mine at DFW before Christmas where the TSO refused to accept my EU passport. She pawed all over the picture, not liking a shadow that my eye glasses showed on the background. She called her supervisor over but that just resulted in a "No ID" note on my BP and I was sent to haraSSSSment. I asked for the PA notice (as ususal) when they copied the BP information and that lead to a blank stare and the "informed" comment from the LTSO that my "civil rights are suspended here; this is security".

I did get an answer from the local TSA at DFW. The interesting thing is that DHS-CBP has inspected this passport 23 times without any problems, but an untrained TSO has to have a shot at the "Big Catch". Pathetic!

My comments on the Privacy Act gave the following answer (bolding is mine): Am I the only one who thinks that there is a problem with the two bolded statements?

So, complain all you want, nothing is going to change, unfortunately.

With all this grief, is it any wonder there are many people who swear they will never fly again?

Edited as I said more than I should have done.

No, you are not the only one - and I would write them back to call them on it. I'd hate to hire a lawyer to do it, but if you have one at your disposal, it would be worthwhile to ask them to type up something that could rip that TSA fool a new one.

No, nothing is going to change unless We The People stand up and do something about it - I'd like to see an organization representing the traveling public formed to counter the TSA. I'd gladly contribute money to a legal and public education fund whose sole purpose was to educate the public about the TSA's problems and failures, motivate the traveling public to stand up for their rights, call out rogue screeners, bury the TSA in complaint paperwork and publicly call for its destruction. At this point, I firmly believe that is well past the point of repair and must be eliminated.

Surely, FT has people with legal, political and organizational expertise to create such an organization - if FT can create SaveSkymiles, I'm sure we can create a similar organization to counter the TSA.

Congress ain't gonna help us, folks - we need to do it ourselves.

I have a bigger problem with the part that I bolded above. A government agency just defacto determines which Constitutional Amendments do and do not apply to their activities? This is so totally opposite to the way the American (and most other) consttutional systems are supposed to work that I can't believe they would so boldly send this out. I recognize there's a lot of court generated dribble about informed consent for airport searches, but I wasn't aware of any precedent for suspending the 4th or any Constitutional amendment at the Check-point Charlies that have been erected in our airports. We're losing this country, it's foundations and its original values, as these armies of fools led by a very special group of morons move to provide us a national ID and limitations on all travel.

I guess it's true what so many of us have been saying: that we are presumed guilty at checkpoints and that the TSA doesn't have to prove we are guilty.

How can there be a criminal investigation if no crime has been committed?

From the Federal Register:

Somebody with more legal knowledge than I needs to interpret this

However, when I read 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3), (d), (e)(1),
(e)(4)(G), (H) and (I), and (f) no where do I see where the TSA is exempted from being required to tell you what they are going to do with the information they collect.

Trying to move up the social ladder? Good for him.

Haven't you heard? We're all guilty until proven innocent. The TSA is trying to help you by going through extra effort to prove your innocence.

Why won't Congress help, tho?

Because congresscritters can get reelected much more easily by being "strong on terror" than they can by actually solving the problem(s) of individuals whom they represent. In one of the other threads in TS/S there is anecdotal evidence from the aides of congressmen who have indicated that unless there's a personal benefit in terms of reelection they aren't going to bother.

I posted this in response to another thread here in Travel Safety but it applies as well:

One of my jobs is as a lobbyist. I regularly meet with congressman and their staffs, so trust me when I say this---their staffs don't care, sometimes they don't care unless they see an angle for them. Not always mind you but the staffs especially could care less.


That is why congress will not help.

Ciao,
FH