Jaunted

Airport Security

Are You on the TSA's Latest Watchlist?

August 13, 2008 at 3:45 PM | 0 Comments

The TSA has been collecting records on thousands of people who went to airport security checkpoints without ID this summer and has opened its files to law enforcement, the agency tells USA Today. Since June, the TSA has collected info on 16,500 fliers.

Agency chief Kip Hawley told the newspaper in an interview Tuesday that the info helps track individuals who may be "probing the system." Later that same day, he called back to say that the TSA would revise its policy and expunge the names it has collected so far.

The agency still maintains a database of info on potential passengers, including their Social Security numbers, nationalities and physical features, if they were questioned for any reason at the airport.

Maybe this is why the TSA says people can show up to the checkpoints without ID:

As many [times] as they want.

Related Stories:
· Fliers Without ID Placed on TSA List [USA Today]
· Adventures in TSA Logic: Explaining the New Laptop Bag Rules [Jaunted]
· TSA coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Mark Demeny]