We all know that retaliatory secondaries exist, but the TSA denies it. It would be great if someone got together a statistically significant group of people and an equally sized control group and had them fly through the same checkpoint on the same TSA shift. Each person in the non-control group should question their screening procedure. I'm sure that the rates of secondaries would be different.

Imagine the publicity a controlled study like this would get.

Imagine all the trouble an organizer of such a survey would get.

Just look here and here for a preview of what is likely to happen.

Two very good ideas came out at PV early on.

Some form of securing checked baggage like strapping and a

Secret Shopper program to evaluate the screening experience.

Notice that TSA ran away from those suggestions as fast as they could.

No form of employee accountablility is acceptable for TSA. That tells me they know their employees act beyond guidance provided on a routine basis and in fact by not acting condone employees exceeding established guidelines.

Reform of TSA from within just doesn't seem possible. It will take a series of events that awakens the public understanding of why TSA is corrupt.

Recent court cases will help to move the ball forward.

I still think that it would be a great way to get publicity.

I don't disagree. My point was that we know TSA will take no action to evaluate a checkpoint from a travelers POV.

An outside effort is likely the only way to bring light to the issues facing the public.

An "outside effort" is likely to be seen by TSA as an attempt by a terrorist organization to game the system and breach security, with unfortunate consequences.

To rate how people are treated at TSA checkpoints?

TSA has invited the scrutiny by their misdeeds.

They forbid deliberately misleading or testing their capabilities (wise decision, knowing how inept they are.) But if this is just a comparison in screening experiences, they can't really complain.

There's no way they'd be able to tell. People question security procedures every day, and they get secondaried for it.

The problem is that it is hard to prove anything...

The TSA staff are "trained" to spot people they feel are more of a security risk than your average passenger, and frankly someone acting hostile or difficult could easily be put into that category.

For example, if an old person complains about having to take their shoes off (as many do) they aren't going to get hit by a secondary screening. But if a twenty something decides to throw up a big fuss then the TSA are likely going to assume that passenger is acting in a suspicious way since 99.98% of people don't do the same.

In my experience is it almost never a good idea to complain to authority figures at the time and instead save your complaints for a later date. This is particularly true with the police, just hush up and raise your complaint to their superior later. Fighting them directly only leads to escalation...

I'd argue that it does prove something. People who complain about security measures or are hostile are not larger threats to security. In fact, it's the opposite. A terrorist would try to avoid any extra scrutiny.

I do travel frequently but so far haven't had any negative experience with TSA except for minor general inconveniences.
1. Some times you end up in a line with a "granny" TSA who is so slow that you wonder whether the person would retire at the end of the day.
2. Some time you stand in line so long that when you see the light at the end of the tunnel, the TSA takes a break or they close the line and move you to a new line etc.
3. You wait in line and suddently, the TSA opens a barrier and lets in a bunch of people.
4. You clear the security after removing your belt, shoes, laptop, change etc to find at the otherside, there is no place to sit and "reassemble" yourself. You endup hopping around in your socks, holding your pants with one hand, and lugging other items with the other.
5. I worry so much about my appearance (to match with the picture ID) that I shave three times a day and keep whatever hair I have exactly the same way as I have in my driver's licence.
6. TSA have more badges, decorations,and stickers on their shirt than Micheal jackson ever had. If I avoid looking at them, I could be profiled as "sneaky"; If I make eye contact, I could be considered "theatening." Generally, I look busy and pretend to take some inocuous item out of my bag.
7. I have also encountered "snoopy" TSAs who just are curious about what people carry in their luggages. Fortunately, I don't carry anything out of the ordinary.
8. In some airport, the security line is a maze. You think that you have reached the end of the line when suddenly the line takes a corner and you see fifty people ahead of you.
9. In some airports, you put your belongings on the teble only to realize that the table ends around a corner and you need to transfer them to the next table.
10. There are very efficient, friendly, and helpful TSAs who go out of the way to assist you. Many times, TSAs have directed me to the right concouse, shorter lines, and have wished me a plesant trip.
My suggestion to fellow travellers are-avoid the line if you see families with small children and strollers-car seats-backpacks with die cast metal toys, people with jackets on top of jackets with loose change for a hundred dollars in their pockets, those with heavy gold chains, bangles, large metal belts, knee high boots, small animals, tool belts, etc ahead of you. These together with an inefficient TSA are guarenteed to make you miss your flight.

5, 6, and 7 make me sad. They've cowed you. I see no reason to act differently or care about my appearance at the checkpoint. "Security" is their problem, not mine.