Monday, February 22, 2010
Four Year Old Boy In Philly Told To Remove Leg Braces
The account goes back to March 2009, but when PHL Federal Security Director (FSD) Robert Ellis learned about it last week, he called the father of the boy immediately. There was no formal report of the incident on file with details, but regardless, Mr. Ellis apologized for any inconvenience the boy and his family may have had to go through.
At TSA, we have a few ways to report any problems you have as soon as it occurs. First, ask for a supervisor immediately. This way, TSA management can look into resolving the issue and any personnel can be identified and retrained as needed. If you choose not to report the incident at the airport, or you feel your incident didn’t receive the attention it should have, you have other options:
Got Feedback – Allows you to contact the Customer Support Manager for the airport you traveled through via e-mail.
TSA Contact Center – You can reach the Contact Center via e-mail, mail or phone. You can find Contact Center info here.
When it comes to screening passengers with disabilities, our officers receive Passengers with Disabilities (PWD) training upon being hired and are required to take annual PWD courses.
From Travelers with Disabilities and Medical Conditions:
In order to achieve that goal, TSA has established a program for screening of persons with disabilities and their associated equipment, mobility aids, and devices. Our program covers all categories of disabilities (mobility, hearing, visual, and hidden). As part of that program, we established a coalition of over 70 disability-related groups and organizations to help us understand the concerns of persons with disabilities and medical conditions. These groups have assisted TSA with integrating the unique needs of persons with disabilities into our airport operations.
Note: In order to keep the flying public safe, our procedures require individuals to undergo thorough screening and there are some rare instances when leg braces may need to be removed. However, this would happen while the passenger was seated and not before they walked through the metal detector.
Blogger Bob
TSA Blog Team
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Explosive Trace Detection Usage Expanded: Give Us A Hand

I’ve talked about using Advanced Imaging Technologies to detect non-metallic and metallic threats, including IEDs already, but today I wanted to talk about another technology we have to detect explosives hidden on people and in bags.
While going through checkpoints, you might have seen officers using little white swabs at TSA checkpoints at one point or another. In case you had no idea what our officers were doing, they were conducting state of the art Explosives Trace Detection (ETD) tests. And all along you thought they were giving your items a complimentary cleaning…
ETD tests are used in checkpoint, checked baggage, and cargo environments. We swab things such as laptops, shoes, film, cell phones, bags, wheelchairs, hands, casts - you name it. Certain procedures call for an ETD test.
Basically, our officers run the white swab over the area in question to collect a trace sample. They then place the swab in the ETD machinery which analyzes the sample for extremely small traces of explosives. The test takes a matter of seconds.

Recently, we tested ETD technology outside its regular use at checkpoints and checked baggage areas, and confirmed its ability to be used in other areas of the airport like the gate to check for explosives residue on passengers. Why the move? Since the attempted attack on 12/25, we looked at ways to immediately strengthen security using existing technology and procedures in different ways. ETD is quick, good for security and cost efficient.
Sure, we’re improving the checkpoints with technology such as Advanced Imaging Technology machines, but we currently have ETD machines at every checkpoint in the country and this new procedure will help us beef up security. Explosive Trace Detection is a highly effective, proven technology.
So as you travel, you might be asked for a swab of your hands at the checkpoint or gate. It’s painless and quick. The swabs are disposed of after each use and will not be used on more than one person.
This is another way we can help keep the flying public safe from attempted attacks such as the one on 12/25.
For additional reading, check out these new articles on our expanded use of ETD technology:
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Bollywood Confidential
TSA reached out to the UK's Department for Transport (DFT) and learned that, just like advanced imaging technology machines in U.S. airports, they do not have printers or the ability to store images in the airport setting.
Additionally, DFT pointed TSA to the source of the rumor: an interview with BBCs Jonathan Ross. Though he doesn't explicitly say that he's joking, we can confirm in all seriousness that the machines don't do what he jokingly describes.
Thanks,
Blogger Bob
TSA Blog Team
Thursday, February 4, 2010
TSA Haiti Evacuation Effort: A Federal Security Director's Perspective

John Daly is the Federal Security Director (FSD) for the Sanford International Airport (SFB). SFB is a hub for the Haiti evacuation efforts and we asked if he’d like to be a guest blogger and tell us a little about the operation. ~ Blogger Bob
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Orlando Officer Arrested
TSA takes allegations such as these very seriously and steps were taken to terminate this employee. Yesterday, the employee resigned.
TSA uses background screening and perpetual vetting to keep those with criminal records out of our workforce, but background checks are not a crystal ball and cannot predict what a person will do in the future.
Our officers are deeply saddened and disgusted that someone who wore the uniform could commit such an unspeakable act. TSA holds the highest standards for our workforce and this individual's actions do not reflect on the more than 50,000 men and women who work every day to keep the traveling public safe.
Blogger Bob
TSA Blog Team
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
What’s Wrong With This Picture?

The TSA Office of Information Technology (OIT) was able to determine that the original images used to make these pictures were taken from a stock photo website and doctored to mimic Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) images. The doctored images are nothing more than full frontal photos (hence the black boxes) with the colors inverted. The image of the gun and belt were superimposed. This can be done with any basic image editing software.
It’s obvious that the woman shown on the left is not the woman in the doctored photos on the right. Notice that the bracelet on the right wrist in the clothed image does not appear in the doctored images. Her arms and legs are also in different positions in the clothed photo. It can be argued that maybe the photo was taken before she entered an AIT machine. Even so, just like X-ray images, hair does not show up in authentic AIT images and faces are blurred with a privacy algorithm.
Please take a look at this blog post to see larger versions of the images below and video of what AIT images actually look like.


Thanks,
Blogger Bob
TSA Blog Team
Friday, January 22, 2010
Can TSA Copy Your Laptop Hard Drive and Search Your Files?

This is not true. In fact, we blogged about it back in February of 2008.
Our officers might visually inspect your laptop and perform an explosives trace detection test, but that’s it. Our officers don’t even turn computers on during inspection.
So where are the reports coming from? They’re coming from people who have had their laptops searched by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). For more details on CBP’s mission, check out this post from the recently retired Deputy Commissioner at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Jayson Ahern.
So where is the confusion taking place? Well, many passengers often confuse CBP with TSA. Why? They have uniforms with the Department of Homeland Security patch and some people automatically assume they are TSA officers since they’re working in an airport capacity. TSA and CBP officers have different uniforms. The CBP uniform is navy blue, while the TSA uniform is more of a royal blue. You will only interact with CBP when you’re coming into the country.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
What Happened in Philadelphia?
TSA views this employee’s behavior to be highly inappropriate and unprofessional and as of today, the employee is no longer with TSA.
Incidents like this are a kick in the gut to our entire workforce who strive daily to do their best and keep the next attack from happening on their watch.
Blogger Bob
TSA Blog Team
Friday, January 15, 2010
There Are No Children on the No Fly or Selectee Lists
There are no children on the No Fly or Selectee lists.
What happens is the child’s name is a match or similar match to an actual individual on the No Fly or Selectee Watch List.
From TSA.gov: Airlines can and should automatically de-select any 8-year-olds out there that appear to be on a watch list. Whether you're eight or 80, the most common occurrence is name confusion and individuals are told they are on the no fly list when in fact, they are not. If you get a boarding pass, you’re not on the no fly list.
The no fly list is reserved for individuals that pose a known threat to aviation. The list is an important tool in our multi-layered approach to aviation security and is used daily to keep individuals that pose a threat to aviation off airplanes.
For more information on the list and to learn about the redress process for individuals that believe they may be on a watch list erroneously, click here.
Secure Flight will fix most of these problems in the future. Secure Flight matches passenger information provided by the airlines with data contained in government-maintained watch list records and verifies any potential matches.
Airlines are beginning to ask for name, date of birth, and gender as it appears on the government ID you plan to use when traveling. This is a part of the Secure Flight program requirements. The program will be in full effect for domestic airlines by mid-year and the rest of the airlines are scheduled to be on board by the end of 2010. Initial estimates indicate that under Secure Flight, in excess of 99 percent of passengers who provided the additional data elements will be able to use Internet check-in, kiosks and experience no delays in obtaining their boarding passes.
In the short term, individuals who have been misidentified as a match or possible match for a Watch List can work through the DHS Redress process to resolve the issue.
Secure Flight Related Posts on the TSA Blog
***Update 1/19/2010 - 4:45 PM***
First and foremost, I want to clarify that my post wasn’t directed at this or any family who have been inconvenienced in situations such as this, but more at the perpetual reporting that there are children on the No Fly list. As a father of two young children, I sympathize with any parent’s frustration at being told their child is on a terrorist watch list, and empathize with any parent going through that situation. It’s terrible.
We’ve said it before, there are no 8 year olds – or other children – on the No Fly or Selectee lists. We may not own the lists (the Terrorist Screening Center does), but we know that kids aren’t on them for sure. The ticketing agent, sky cap or other airline employees at the airport do not know who is on or not on a watch list, and they have no business telling a parent that their kid is on one because it’s simply not true. Airlines can and should automatically de-select any child that appears to be on a watch list when they see them at the check-in counter. You can also check this out for other debunked myths about watch lists.
Anyone who can’t print a boarding pass from home or at a kiosk because they are currently misidentified with someone who is actually on the list should apply for redress to fix the problem. And as I’ve said before, TSA is working to implement the Secure Flight program, which brings watch list matching back to TSA from the airlines. When people provide their date of birth and gender when booking their flight under Secure Flight, it will eliminate about 99% of misidentifications once its fully implemented.
For anybody who is new to the TSA Blog, please know that I’m a blogger and not an official TSA media spokesperson.
The way I write and address issues is different than a spokesperson would address issues with traditional media, and I certainly didn’t mean to belittle the experience of any families who have been through this.
Sincerely,
Blogger Bob
TSA Blog Team
Help for Haiti: Learn What You Can Do

The page is a great resource for information on news and updates, donations to the American Red Cross, ways you can help in the relief effort, getting information about friends or family, and the federal response. You can sign up for e-mail alerts and get the code to add a “Help for Haiti” image to embed on your blog or webpage.
If you’d like to be involved or get information on the effort, please visit: http://www.whitehouse.gov/haitiearthquake
Our hearts here at TSA go out to the people of Haiti.
Thanks,
Blogger Bob
TSA Blog Team