New TSA Screening Methods to Hit US Airports

Technology has now taken us to the next generation of TSA screening. The U.S. government is now testing equipment that can sense changes in pulse rate and breathing. These minute changes, invisible to the naked eye can even sense tiny changes in skin temperature and set TSA crews into action to further interview and assess a possible terrorist. Or, could they be hassling an innocent passenger that’s simply afraid to fly?

The Feds have high hopes that this high tech big brother technology will pay off big. The biometric equipment is ow being tested and implemented by the TSA, in airports all over the US. Critics state that such types of screenings may be invasive and misinterpreted.

The futuristic equipment works on the same theory as a polygraph, looking for sharp swings in body temperature, pulse and breathing that signal, the kind of anxiety exuded by a would-be terrorist or criminal. Unlike a lie-detector test that hard wires subjects to sensors as they answer questions, the new technology scans people as they walk by a set of cameras.

The Transportation Safety Administration has recruited and trained over 2000 employees to pick out those passengers that seem nervous. The new system is designed to be portable and quick, and is hoped to scan people as they walk around the train station and airport. Those flagged by the machine would receive a more depth interview, directly in front of the camera that is set up to pick up even the slightest facial movements.

Tagged with: airport • homeland security • national security • screening • security • technology • terrorism • tsa

Filed under: Science

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