Harrassed by TSA? Now, There’s an App for That

No one is a fan of the Transportation Security Administration’s screening tactics. But for some travelers, a trip through airport security is worse than others. Enter FlyRights.

FlyRights is a new app, designed by the Sikh Coalition, that enables travelers to report instances of airport profiling by TSA officials, in real-time. Officials from TSA and the Department of Homeland Security will review each app-submitted complaint.  

Before the app became available yesterday, complaints had to be filed on TSA’s website. But the ability to submit real-time complaints can only be a benefit to travelers. It will help them to remember each detail of their experience, right after it happened, and increase the transparency of TSA’s operations.

“The TSA asserts it doesn’t profile. This application will allow us to better assess whether that’s true,” Amardeep Singh, director of programs at the Sikh Coalition, told ABC News. “All travelers now have an easy way of speaking to their government on the issue of airport profiling.”

The Sikh Coalition was inspired to create this app after finding that Sikhs at some airports are subjected to secondary screening 100 percent of the time. What a stressful, time-consuming ordeal to experience every time you fly.

The app was developed with input from DHS and various civil rights groups in the black, Latino, South Asian, and Muslim communities.

Ready to let TSA hear what you think? Download FlyRights here.

CLEAR is Back!

CLEAR, the biometric-screening program that lets members speed through airport security checkpoints, is back, baby. After a brief hiatus, in certain cities, the expedited lanes are available at Denver International, Orlando International, San Francisco and Dallas/Fort Worth airports.

Pay an annual membership fee of $179 (or less for a corporate rate) to skip the lengthy security lines that plague these major airports.

After completing online registration, you receive instructions to visit an enrollment center with a driver's license and passport (or other approved ID) to complete enrollment. During the security clearance process, CLEAR will collect biometric scans of your fingerprints and irises. Those biometrics will be linked to a chip-enhanced card, which ensures that you are who you say you are.

Since a CLEAR member has already been screened and scanned, he or she can sail on through, right past TSA.

More than 85,000 members have already signed up, and the program will only become more popular as TSA ridiculousness continues.

Enroll in CLEAR right here.

Airport Security: They're Doin' It Wrong

In the midst of the busiest travel season of all, I've been doing a lot of thinking about airport security.

Maybe it's because we just just passed the two-year anniversary of the Underwear Bomber incident that took TSA to a whole new level. Or maybe it's because I had a heinous travel experience last night that included an overheated airport, lots of wasted time and my first "enhanced" pat-down.

Let's say it's the former.

Either way, there has to be a method for better processing air passengers that will ensure their safety while still letting them maintain some amount of privacy and dignity. The enhanced pat-down is not the answer; turns out, it's just as invasive as people have claimed. I couldn't get my face to un-blush for 10 minutes.

Then maybe I should have simply opted for the millimeter wave scanner. But since the jury is still out on the safety (and effectiveness) of these devices, I'll take my chances with Disgruntled TSA Agent No. 422.

So what's the answer? I think trusted traveler programs are a step in the right direction. Heathrow recently installed facial recognition scanners that will verify the identity of member travelers. These additional screening lanes would let frequent travelers breeze through, cutting down on long wait times and stressed-out TSA workers.

Even TSA's new program, PreCheck, seems to be a step in the right direction. It gives airport security agents the kind of information that airlines already collect and store on their frequent fliers, like how they paid for their tickets, their flight history and home addresses. So far, the program includes about 85,000 members between the two airlines that are currently participating, American and Delta.

“What we are trying to do is find that needle in the haystack,” said John S. Pistole, the head of the TSA, when the program launched. “If we can reduce that haystack, it can help us. We have to have a starting point someplace. The intelligence tells us a number of things, but the great likelihood is that a very frequent flier is not going to be a terrorist.”

Obviously, programs like PreCheck aren't the ultimate answer. In fact, some passengers are already raising concerns about the fairness of trusted traveler programs. One argument is that they favor frequent fliers, a group which includes a disproportionate amount of wealthy people. This has some worried that lower-income passengers will be unfairly subjected to more extensive screening.

Until the Total Recall airport screening machine is invented, we may have to make do with our current security theater mess. Oh wait: That thing took full-body, unprotected x-rays. OK, who's got a better idea?

Airlines' Checked-bag Fees: Bad for Security?

Checked-bag fees aren't just a financial hassle--according to the director of the Transportation Security Administration, they may also be compromising the safety of U.S. flights.

John Pistole on Friday explained during a speech that checked-bag fees only encourage passengers to overpack their carry-on bags. Often, he said, these bags are so densely packed that TSA's imaging machines cannot see into them to detect harmful objects.

“It’s harder to inspect what’s in there,” Pistole said. “When you hear about things getting through security, that’s part of the reason why.”

On top of that concern, the U.S. Travel Association earlier this year expressed worry over checked-bag fees' effect on the security screen line. The more passengers with overly packed carry-on bags, the longer the security line--and the less time TSA officers have for screening everyone else.

Tell us what you think: Do the checked-bag fees have an effect on security? Or are they just maddening?

Would Nixing the TSA Help the Deficit?

Here's an interesting bit of trivia for all of you who hate modern airport security: If he were elected president, Rep. Ron Paul's economic plan would include abolishing the Transportation Security Administration, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security that emerged in the wake of 9/11.

Part of Paul's vision to "restore America" to prosperity involves killing several government agencies, including TSA and the departments of Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce, Interior and Education. The cost savings to Americans? One trillion dollars in taxes from the TSA alone.

Paul has been a long-time critic of TSA, claiming that the agency has harrassed passengers, humiliated the elderly and molested children. Instead, airport security should be left to the airlines, he says.

What do you think? Do you trust airlines enough to oversee airport security? Or would you rather stick with TSA?