SECURITY scanners that can see through passengers' clothing and reveal details such as their sex organs, colostomy bags and breast size, are being installed in 10 US airports.

A random selection of travellers getting ready to board airplanes in Washington, New York's Kennedy, Los Angeles and other key hubs will be shut in the glass booths while a three-dimensional image is made of their body beneath their clothes.

The booths close around the passenger and emit "millimetre waves" that go through cloth to identify metal, plastics, ceramics, chemical materials and explosives, according to the Transport Safety Authority.

While it allows the security screeners - looking at the images in a separate room - to clearly see the passenger's sexual organs as well as other details of their bodies, the passenger's face is blurred, TSA said.

The scan only takes seconds and is to replace the physical pat-downs of people that is currently widespread in airports.

TSA began introducing the body scanners in airports in April, first in the Phoenix, Arizona terminal.

The installation is picking up this month, with machines in place or planned for airports in Washington (Reagan National and Baltimore-Washington International), Dallas, Las Vegas, Albuquerque, Miami and Detroit.

The new machines have provoked worries among passengers and rights activists.

"People have no idea how graphic the images are," Barry Steinhardt, director of the technology and liberty program at the American Civil Liberties Union, said.

The ACLU said passengers expecting privacy underneath their clothing "should not be required to display highly personal details of their bodies such as evidence of mastectomies, colostomy appliances, penile implants, catheter tubes and the size of their breasts or genitals as a pre-requisite to boarding a plane".

Besides masking their faces, the TSA says on its website, the images made "will not be printed stored or transmitted".

"Once the transportation security officer has viewed the image and resolved anomalies, the image is erased from the screen permanently. The officer is unable to print, export, store or transmit the image."

Lara Uselding, a TSA spokeswoman, said passengers were not obliged to accept the new machines.

"The passengers can choose between the body imaging and the pat-down," she said.

TSA foresees 30 of the machines installed across the country by the end of 2008. In Europe, Amsterdam's Schipol airport is already using the scanners.




NO THANKS! I don't need security looking at my penis as I'm waiting to board a plane!!. Plus I don't want some slimey security guard looking at my girlfriends breats!
Is this invasion of privacy?? I think so.

Actually, that's gonna happen. You know it is.

Thought it would be funny to take some metallic ink, and leave the voyeur a message or two...

Missing I can totally see you doing that.

You know it.

(grins)

Something like:

"If you can read this, you should feel really bad about it."

What I find most disturbing is that one just has to take the TSA at its word that the machines won't store or transfer images.

My cock is above average in size. But, that way, it is easier to juggle. You can just plain do a little more with a larger cock. Getting through security has always been a problem for me and my largest cock. I like to take it as a carry-on. I just explain that I like to juggle it. Oh sure, I get weird looks. But it just feels so natural. I used to juggle my big cock at Saturday Market. Right by the fountain. I had security come and talk to me about that though. I had to stop.

Seriously though, if it is truly effective and efficent use of time and money...and makes the line go faster and keeps me from getting killed, go ahead. Take a look. Knock yourself out. I don't care.

The scandal will happen when what looks like a woman, gets scanned, and is found to have a large cock. TSA should not allow that. They should stop that cock ( cock-block, if you will ) from passing through to the gate.

I hate the competition.

"If you can read this, you should feel really bad about it."

Or, as a pop culture reference " Soy Bomb! " See if that gets you any extra attention. I'm guessing yes.

Oh yeah, big time!!

"Detachable Penis" -- Some artist on KNRK. Hilarious song, that fits your post!

Well, with that phrase, all it takes is one look at the operator. I'll know they were looking for the sake of it, and that's good enough.

Whoever has that sorry job is gonna see enough anatomy that I'm not worried, so the message bit would be poking some fun more than anything else.

King Missile.

Alfredo, I really don't buy that. IMHO, storage is totally necessary as evidence to hold against anybody they detain, or search.

"Once the transportation security officer has viewed the image and resolved anomalies, the image is erased from the screen permanently. The officer is unable to print, export, store or transmit the image."

I think the devil is in the details. If the anomaly is not resolved (and since when did that become a common place word?), then what?

We don't know that, and I'll bet a cookie that we don't know it because the images are freaking stored. They would be fools not to store them.

I would store them.

So, it's very reasonable to expect them to store them. It's also then reasonable to assume we won't like the idea of that, so they spin the hell out of it, counting on the secret law bit to hide the real facts from us and call it good.

I really, really, really, don't like the idea that the TSA can enforce laws on us that we can't read in advance.

That's not American at all.

...but leaving a message for the operator is!

Heh!

" Then as I walked down Second Avenue toward St. Mark's Place where all those people sell used books and other junk on the street
I saw my penis lying on a blanket next to a broken toaster oven
Some guy was selling it
I had to buy it off him
He wanted 22 bucks but I talked him down to 17"

That song had a nice run. Just right. Silly and wry at the same time.

Good grief Randy! That's a great one! Add a big arrow, pointing right at it too!

Man, this is getting to be a morbid thread and quick!

Yeah, it sure did. Miss it sometimes. They should just put it in very minor rotation along with the other bizzare ones they used to play more often.

THey have been playing "detachable Penis" on KUFO a lot lately, NOT NRK. Im not sure what the heck NRK is today? Are they even considered a rock station? I stoped listening to NRK when they changed their format.
As for the airport,
I bet some perv will be transfering the images and putting them on the internet. I can just see it now.
"Airport boobs click here!

There's nothing to worry about Missing. I'm sure the machine operators will be trained not to laugh.

HAHA and ha.

Why don't they hire transgenders as screeners not to offend anyone...

Hey CJ, what do you think the screener would do when you show up like:
http://a421.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/38/m_d482679a0ca49268d373e4386c733 f3c.jpg

Some screeners might want to do a hand inspection.

>>Is this invasion of privacy?? I think so.

Don't know why the ACLU is not all over this like a security scanner!

They probably are..

(goes to look)

Yep. Actually, they've got a decent backgrounder on things:

http://www.aclu.org/privacy/35506res20080603.html

At least we know the level of detail will be.

The Future Of Airport Security!

http://www.propagandamatrix.com/images/august2006/140806future.jpg

Well...so much for see through scanners!...but wait...their all ready on DEE PLAIN...DEE PLAIN!

Oh the embarrassment of airport security!

YES!!

Thanks for the Video.

Deane, I'm sure you are spot on with that comment. Even the TSA and it's secret laws wouldn't stand up to that bad PR.

deleted

Well if they say anything, I'll offer them a lot closer look........

Thats fine AOK, but just remember your "Johnson" might be all over the internet. Are you willing to deal with the public scrutiny?

I can just see the internet sites now
"Click here for Teeny Weenies, straight from the airport!

For some people here, their johnson is the least of their worries -- its their boneheaded comments that they posted here in this internet forum that will do (or already did) them in.