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Tags: Scams / Bribes / Security / Borders / → All Tags

Chicanery in Bangkok: Tourists Falsely Accused of Shoplifting at Duty Free Stores

Most travelers accept that low-level graft, bribery, and off-the-books transactions are an unavoidable part of visiting certain foreign countries. Sure, the security guard in Zambia might suggest you give him a few kwacha to "buy a beer" if you want to gain access to a government ministry, or the border agent in Latvia may hint that a ten-euro note folded into your passport might help you make your ferry in Tallinn on time, but rarely does this chicanery rise to the level encountered by a number of tourists in Thailand recently. As the AP points out, the governments of several European countries have put out warnings to their nationals to be wary of a scam in Thailand's Suvarnabhumi Airport in which tourists browsing in the duty-free shop are falsely accused of shoplifting, and then shaken down by seedy intermediaries for sums of up to $10,000 or more to win their freedom.

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Tags: Crime / Dangerous Travel / Security / → All Tags

Somebody's Watching Me: Jamaican Tourist Town to Install Security Cameras

Jamaica is a beautiful country, and I would encourage anybody to visit, but it's definitely a place where you want to keep your personal safety in mind. The island, after all, has one of the highest murder rates in the world, and while tourists generally aren't the targets, they do fall victim to plenty of street crime at resort areas. That's why the government announced recently that it would install dozens of surveillance cameras in the tourist town of Ocho Rios, home of the famous Dunn's River Falls. As the AP points out, the cameras will be set up at bus stops and other public areas, as they already are in cities like Kingston and Montego Bay.

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Tags: TSA Watch / Travel News / Security / Airport Security / TSA / → All Tags

The TSA Asks, 'How Do You Spell That Again?'

Big Brother is watching you, and he is in league with the TSA to discover your real first name, or that middle name you've been hiding since middle school; we're talking to you Blandinas and Michael Adolfs out there.

On Friday, the TSA instituted a part of its "Secure Flight passenger vetting program," whereby people purchasing tickets must use the exact names found on their form of identification. Already the first commenter on Today in the Sky voices our thoughts on the effectiveness of this extra wall: "Yet any kid with MS Paint can continue to change the name on the boarding pass after an online checkin - go TSA!"

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Tags: TSA / Travel News / Security / Airport Security / → All Tags

TSA Freaks Us Out With Devotion to 'Suspicious Behavior'

Just to pile on the dread for your next flight, now that you'll be listing your sex and birthdate in the hopes that it doesn't land you on the No-Fly list, the TSA has announced that they'll be randomly pulling more passengers for special screening based on "suspicious behavior." Since we're already super self-conscious of our movements in the security line, so much so that we wonder if they're scrutinizing the way we stand with hands on our hips, then it looks as though we're in for a whole extra helping of trouble.

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Tags: Google Earth / India Travel / Security / → All Tags

After Mumbai, Will India Ban Google Earth?

Google Earth, the magical software that makes real life more like Second Life, may have been used in the planning of the recent terrorist assault on Mumbai, says a lawyer who has filed suit in the Bombay High Court. He's hoping that the Indian government will order a "complete ban on Google Earth and similar sites like Wikimapia" in the interest of national security.

Indian officials have previously expressed concerns about security and mapping software, as in 2006 when then-President Abdul Kalam warned about Google Earth and its utility to terrorists. The search giant agreed in 2007 to blur out some imagery that India deemed sensitive, but that clearly didn't include tourist-friendly venues in the heart of Mumbai.

To us, this is a case of "guns don't kill people, people do." Even the areas worldwide already blurred out by Google are listed on the internet, and making photos of "sensitive" facilities--whatever that means--difficult to obtain doesn't eliminate threats. But the band of terrorists in Mumbai wasn't looking to take out a secret military installation; their goals were massive chaos, a high body count and as much media exposure as possible.

As to whether an eventual ban on Google Earth will help stem violence in India, a company spokesman tells The Telegraph:

Tools such as Google Earth are built from information that is already available from both commercial and public sources, and it is important to remember that the same information is available to anyone who purchases imagery from those public sources.

Related Stories:
· Complete Ban on Google Earth Sought [Times of India]
· Surveying Mumbai After the Terror Siege [Jaunted]

[Photo of the Bombay High Court: Google Earth]

Tags: Are You Kidding Me? / TSA / Air Marshals / Security / → All Tags

U.S. Air Marshals Infiltrated by Scumbags

If you want to relax and enjoy your travels this Thanksgiving, do not read this USA Today story on air marshals. You'll rest easier if you're unaware that more than three dozen U.S. air marshals have been charged with serious crimes since the agency was drastically expanded after 9/11. But since you've gotten this far, here's the lowdown: a recent ProPublica report points out a few of the more disturbing cases, which range from drug smuggling to bribery to trying to hire a hit man to off the old lady. A Las Vegas marshal, for example, was accused by his girlfriend of "pressing his thumbs into the corners of her eyes during a fight" and convicted of domestic battery. Uncool! An Orlando air marshal was busted "photographing women’s crotches on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial while on a layover between missions." Weird and creepy! An air marshal from New York, meanwhile, stands accused of "shoving a flight attendant and waving his gun in a Los Angeles hotel." Extremely disconcerting! We understand that the crumb bums represent only a small percentage of the approximately 3,000 - 4,000 air marshals out there, but in absolute numbers, when close to 20 agents are charged with felonies and dozens of others are accused of misconduct, it doesn't inspire much confidence in the agency's hiring practices. Come on, these people are supposed to be the best of the best, and a heck of a lot is at stake when an incident occurs at 35,000 feet. Maybe the economic slowdown will be a benefit to the agency by adding more qualified applicants to the labor pool. If not, the next Air Marshal movie might be a comedy rather than an action thriller.

[Photo: msnbc.com]

Related Stories:
· Crimes by Air Marshals Raise Questions About Hiring [USA Today]
· Air Marshals and the Law [ProPublica]
· TSA Coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: Travel Hell / Adrienne Bailon / Airport Security / Security / JFK / → All Tags

Adrienne Bailon Loses Laptop, Nude Photos At JFK

Let this be a lesson to you laptop-toting travelers: Marginally famous Cheetah Girls singer Adrienne Bailon had some semi-nude snaps stolen from her computer after she misplaced it while transiting JFK last month.

The internet's authority on sex tapes, TMZ, has details:

She filed a report with the Port Authority--but later that day her record label received an anonymous phone call from a man saying he had her laptop and would return it for $1000.

A meeting was set up at JFK with the anonymous man, where he was given the money, and in turn gave up Bailon's missing laptop.

Bailon's misfortune--she was just trying to thrill boyfriend Robert Kardashian!--is a good reminder to always password protect your files and keep an eye on that laptop, especially when going through frequently hectic security checkpoints. Computers aren't lost as often as you might think, but some solid encryption on your hard drive should keep your sexy photos out of enemy hands.

Related Stories:
· Cheetah Girl Cheated Out of Semi-Nude Pics [TMZ]
· Travel Referendums: Keeping Your Laptop and Data Secure [Jaunted]

[Photo: IMDb]

Tags: Airport Security / Security / TLV / → All Tags

Airport Security: Has Our Shoe Salvation Arrived?

Could this be what we've all been waiting for? Israel's Ben-Gurion International has added a gizmo called MagShoe to its security checkpoints in Terminal 3, meaning some passengers will be able to leave their shoes on.

MagShoe specifically scans the feet and ankles of fliers, and while it doesn't sniff for explosives, it can presumably detect batteries and wires packed into the heels of a potential bomber's kicks. (It picks up both ferrous and non-ferrous metals, though the manufacturer says the device "ignores metal normally found inside shoes to reduce false alarms.")

A foot scan with MagShoe takes only two seconds, which is substantially less time than it takes us to horn our shoes back on while juggling our laptop after clearing a TSA checkpoint.

Related Stories:
· About MagShoe [Official Site]
· Lulz with the TSA [Jaunted]
· TSA Testing New Shoes-on Technology [Jaunted]

Tags: TSA / Airports / Security / Airport Security / Laptop Bags / Blogs / Travel Blogs / → All Tags

Seemingly Impossible Travel: TSA Blog Reaches New Level of Absurdity

Tomorrow, the latest TSA shitshow starts, with passengers trying--undoubtedly with varying degrees of success--to run their laptops through x-ray machines while still inside carry-on bags. So how did the agency remind travelers about the new policy today?

James Brown once sang that Papa's Got a Brand New Bag. Well, it may be a different kind of bag than what the Godfather was singing about, but now everybody can feel better than James Brown and keep their laptop in their "checkpoint friendly" bag as long it meets certain criteria.

There you have it: Just buy a magical bag and you'll feel better than a guy who died from congestive heart failure brought on by pneumonia!

Related Stories:
· Keep Your Laptop In [TSA Blog]
· Adventures in TSA Logic: Explaining the New Laptop Bag Rules [Jaunted]
· TSA coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: TSA / Security / Airport Security / Kip Hawley / Blogs / Travel Blogs / → All Tags

TSA Backpeddling on Suspicious Passenger List Story

This is why the TSA has a blog. Yesterday, USA Today revealed that the agency was collecting data on people who came to security checkpoints without ID. In the evening, the TSA posted a public reply to the piece:

An August 13 USA Today article overstated the Transportation Security Administration's interest in passengers who come to airport checkpoints without identification but cooperate in establishing their identity. The story gives the public the impression they might be put on a "list" if they forget their ID. That is false.

Passengers whose identity is confirmed will not be added to any watch list or face additional scrutiny during future checkpoint visits.

Well, not any longer anyway! While this misleading comment from the TSA jives with the newspaper's story, it fails to point out that up until yesterday, Kip Hawley and company *were* collecting data on passengers.

Fortunately the commenters on the TSA blog aren't dumb enough to buy this double talk. It took 57 minutes before "seth" wrote:

Kip says that the names were being collected and that the practice stopped yesterday. You're now saying that the names were never being collected. Which one is it?

Related Stories:
· You Won't Be Put on a "List" [TSA Blog]
· Fliers Without ID Placed on TSA List [USA Today]
· Are You on the TSA's Latest Watchlist? [Jaunted]
· TSA coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: Airport Security / Security / TSA / Kip Hawley / → All Tags

Are You on the TSA's Latest Watchlist?

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]

Tags: Airport Hell / Airport Security / Security / TSA / → All Tags

Adventures in TSA Logic: Explaining the New Laptop Bag Rules

Any government agency could potentially take a seven-word laptop-screening policy ("Take your computer out of its bag") and turn it into a 510-word briefing including two diagrams, a bulleted list, a note and a disclaimer. But only the TSA would have audacity to dub that kind of effort "simplifying laptop bag procedures."

Yep, there are apparently four different styles of new laptop bags that are OK by the TSA, but don't try to sneak an "accordion style" pouch past these logicians! Actually, don't try to sneak anything by them because:

If [an officer] finds that the bag does not present a clear and distinct image of the laptop separate from the rest of the bag, the laptop will have to be screened separately.

Still wondering why we called this plan stupid?

Related Stories:
· TSA "Simplifying Laptop Bag Procedures" [Official Site]
· Airport Security coverage [Jaunted]