TSA archives full-body scans at airports.

04 August 2010

A couple of years back the Transportation Security Agency started deploying full body scanners at some airports around the country which use millimeter wave radar to scan travelers and show them as if they were nude (note: actual image, NSFW) to ensure that they weren't concealing anything under their clothes. Nevermind the fact that they utterly failed in the practicals, but never let it be said that a little thing like "it doesn't do what we want it to" stops a government project. Needless to say this has many people upset and has even resulted in no small amount of humiliation. When the TSA first announced the trials of these scanning in the United States units they swore up and down that no images of people would be saved (and hence, none could be leaked). Those of you who've been paying attention in the past decade will find it no surprise whatsoever that the TSA lied. A millimeter wave full-body scanner installed in just one courthouse in the state of Florida has been saving thousands upon thousands of scans offline. If you look at the PDF of the TSA's project requirements linked off of the source article you will note that they specifically wanted the scanners to be able to export the images.. as well as be able to transmit them across a data network.

So.. what's it going to take, people? How much farther will things have to go before people stand up and say "No more!"