Better than Body Scanners

By: Omar Ha-Redeye · January 8, 2010 · Filed Under Politics, Privacy Law, Technology · 6 Comments

Despite all the hype about body scanners, there are some very significant limitations to their use.

One issue is limitation of use on children, which can violate child pornography laws. Statements by Canadian officials that there haven’t been any incidents involving children yet is not very reassuring, especially in this industry where mitigation and prevention are the appropriate benchmarks.

A more significant concern is that body scanners is that they are not very effective for ingested or internally placed hazards (i.e. other cavities).

Wired has a technological solution that would address these concerns, without the same privacy issues, through diffraction-enhanced X-ray imaging (DEXI).

Although some may protest the additional radiation exposure, it’s a valid trade-off in my opinion. Depending on the duration and frequency of flights, many travelers would have more radiation exposure from flying than these machines. My radiation exposure working in diagnostic imaging was frequently lower than commercial airline employees.

Post tags: body scanners, DEXI, Nesch, radiation exposure

Criteria for Body Scan Screenings

By: Omar Ha-Redeye · January 5, 2010 · Filed Under Civil Rights, Politics, Privacy Law · 3 Comments

We seem to be getting mixed messages today about the use of body scanners in Canada.

The Privacy Commissioner of Canada conducted two Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) for the Canadian Air Transport Security Association (CATSA) to assess the impact of whole body scanners.

Assistant Privacy Commission Chantal Bernier said in a speech in Ottawa on October 30, 2009,

…we consider this technology to be inherently sensitive as it reveals an outline of the traveller’s body. Many people may perceive it as privacy invasive.

Pulat Yunusov has noted earlier that the personal privacy issues may not necessarily be as significant, given the low resolution and identity controls around the imaging.

Of greater concern is which individuals are selected for body scans. Bernier allayed these concerns as well in the same speech,

…the technology will be used only for secondary purposes, after an individual has already passed through the metal detector. What’s more, the scans will be voluntary, with passengers given the option of going through them, or having a physical pat-down.

Bernier repeated these criteria today in comments to the press, stating that it is only for those who have failed the metal detector test.

However, Rob Merrifield, Junior Transport Minister, stated in a joint conference with John Baird,

Travelers who are selected for secondary screening will be asked to walk through the wave scanner…
[emphasis added]

Although Merrifield did mention the alternative physical search, the metal detector is conspicuously absent – at least in media reports of the conference.

Removing the metal detector component of secondary screening makes the scans no longer voluntary. It also introduces a significant amount of arbitrariness and discretion into their use, making them subject to abuse.

Anyone compelled to go through a body scan without failing a metal detector test, or not informed of the alternative physical search if they do, should issue a complain while citing the PIA guidelines. At the very least, the Ministers should clarify what the criteria are for using the body scanners to avoid confusion among the public and by security officials.

Ministers of the opposition parties have noted that typically an issue like this would go before a Parliamentary committee, where such clarification would likely be sought.

But that’s right, we can’t do that because with have a Prime Minister that would prorogue politics over our safety.

Post tags: body scanners, Canadian Air Transport Security Association, John Baird, national security, Privacy, Privacy Impact Assessments, prorogue, Rob Merrifield

See-through body scanners are not as bad as they sound

By: Pulat Yunusov · October 30, 2009 · Filed Under Privacy, Privacy Law · Add Comment

According to media reports on Friday, the federal privacy commissioner approved the see-through airport body scanners. These machines show your naked body in Casper-the-ghost 3D on the security officer’s screen. Although the officer can easily see if you are a bikini model or a beer belly, the procedure is subject to restrictions and rules that create a good balance between security and privacy. Don’t be afraid of see-through scanners unless we hear some bad news about their health effects down the road.

Dave Thompson/Press Association The scanners are supposed to speed up and improve that irritating extra screening at the airport. So the first rule is they will scan you only if security officers select you for extra screening. The second rule is you still have the option of a physical pat-down. The scanners give travellers a choice between physical touching and having your x-ray nude body on the screen. If this is the case, then scanners don’t make your life more miserable. You are already in humiliating extra screening, where the officers had had the right to strip-search you even before the scanners were proposed.

The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority promised the privacy commissioner that the officer viewing your body on the screen will be in a separate room. That’s another restriction on security to protect your privacy. But it works only if that officer can’t learn your name or store the image of your body. Unless you have a gun on you or some plastic explosive in your shoes, the officers should not connect your personal information to the image or retain the image in their computers.

Airport see-through body scanners can speed up the humiliating extra screening. They give people who don’t like pat-downs a choice. And scanners seems to be an excellent security tool. As long as they are not required in addition to pat-downs and as long as officers can’t keep your personal information and images without probable cause, scanners seem to balance privacy with security well. Hopefully, you won’t need to go through extra screening, but if you do, the scanners may be just the way to breeze through it, especially if you are late for your flight.