X-Ray Scanning at Airport Security

I asked my girlfriend once when I was still in College, “Suppose you were to get caught in a dormitory ‘panty-raid’ and you were just getting out of the shower.  If all you had was a small wash cloth, would you cover your top, or your bottom?”  Her answer surprised me, “I’d cover my face.” she said.  Her answer was brilliant and apparently the TSA listened to her because they do the same thing with their x-ray machines that can “see through” your clothes.

People are getting all whipped up about this, and for all the wrong reasons.  Here are some facts:

• The machine is programmed to blur out your face, the technician viewing the photo has no control over that.  He’s probably not smart enough to write a “Hello World” program in Visual Basic…
• The machine is programmed to delete your image as soon as the technician clicks to move on to the next image.
• The technician is sitting in an enclosed, detached room that is far away from the actual scanning device, so he/she can’t see the actual person who was scanned.  Results are sent back via radio signal.
• If you’re still worked up about it, you can request an old fashioned “pat down” by hand, if you want to avoid the machine.
• The machine cannot see through your clothes.  It uses thermal and other technology to produce a black and white image that “Sees” cold things, relative to the temperature of your body.  Here’s a sample:

Fortunately, they aren’t scanning everyone right now.  They’re only scanning the ones who “beep” when they walk through the initial metal detector.  However, a detour through the new x-ray machine will force you to produce and explain all of the NON-metal objects in your pocket.  Credit cards, dollar bills, plastic toys, business cards, pens, pencils, bottle caps, combs… all of these items are enough to confuse the TSA (especially if they’re shiny) and cost everyone more time.  “Let me see that pencil, sir.”  “Sure, if I stab you in the neck with it, can we get rid of these damn machines?”

If we have millions of dollars to invest in x-ray goggles, than why can’t we invest that money in profile training?  Very large in airports in high terrorist countries that have never been compromised can attest to the effectiveness of terrorist profiling.  Watch the people and pull out the weirdoes, that’s all I’m asking!  Write your TSA office, every little bit helps!

EXTRA: If you have questions for Ken regarding business travel, hotels, airplanes, etc, please call 1-877-49-EXPERT.  Your questions will be recorded and Ken will answer the best ones in his Ask the Expert podcast show.