It will only be a matter of time before your naked body, posed hands up in surrender, winds up on the Internet. Or perhaps that of your children.
Officials have time and again assured the public that images won’t be stored or transmitted; they will be immediately deleted after they are looked at.
Of course they can store and transmit the images, and will. They have to.
Think about it: If something happens on a flight, why would they destroy potential evidence that a passenger had something (or conversely evidence that clears them)? Like robbing a convenience store, what’s the first thing detectives do? Check the security tapes, which are stored for some period of time.
It may be that the images are deleted after said passenger lands without incident, gets their bag and goes on their way, but what sense does it make to destroy potential evidence before they are out of the system? They may not be kept forever, but certainly at least while they are still a risk (or at risk). Which means your body scan will be linked with your name and other personal information – easy to do.
An article at Rawstory said
On its Web site, the TSA explains that “this state-of-the-art technology cannot store, print, transmit or save the image. In fact, all machines are delivered to airports with these functions disabled.”
The last part of the quote here is key — the machines will be delivered with those functions disabled, not without those functions at all. The TSA’s procurement guidelines (PDF) for the body scanners state that the machines will have two modes, a “test mode” and a “screening mode.” The machines will not be able to store and transmit images when in “screening mode,” but will be able to do so in “test mode.”
Which also means, yes, if you’re taking, storing and transmitting naked images of people under 18, you are violating child pornography laws. Will individual TSA agents get a waver to victimize children, or can anyone with a badge have a go? Remember, if you’re consenting to these scans and you’re over 18, you’re consenting to have your naked image taken, stored and transmitted. How long do you think it will take for your image to hit the net?
If the scanners are put on any network, they can be hacked, and likely will – just for fun, if not for nefarious reasons.
An unsigned editorial at the Washington Post said, essentially, “Don’t worry. You can trust the TSA”
According to the agency, the machine’s ability to store, print, transmit or save the images is disabled when it is delivered to the airport. And here’s one last precaution: Officers in that remote screening room are prohibited from bringing in cellphones, cameras or any device with a camera.
This comes as little comfort to anyone who has ever had something stolen from their luggage.
Will the TSA officers have to pass through their own security scanners before entering the “viewing room” or will it just be a rule they are expected to follow when they’re all alone with the monitor?
Feel safe yet? I don’t. If my out-of-shape nakedness ends up on the internet, the least the TSA can do is give me a cut of the royalties.
Posted by robertsalmanac 


