DHS biometric program begins in Atlanta and Detroit

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Non-U.S. citizens flying from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport will now have to leave their fingerprints as they leave the country. The objective, of course, is to prevent the use of forged or otherwise fraudulent documents, curb identity theft and apprehend “criminals and immigration violators.”

“Collecting biometrics allows us to determine faster and more accurately whether non-U.S. citizens have departed the United States on time or remained in the country illegally,” said DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano. “The pilot programs in Atlanta and Detroit will help us determine and develop standard procedures for use at airports across the country to expedite legitimate travel and enhance our nation’s security.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers will be taking the fingerprints at the boarding gate in Detroit, with Transportation Security Administration officers doing the honors at the gate in Atlanta. The program is expected to run through early July at these two airports. If the test run goes well, it will be implemented across the United States within the next year.

Airport puffer program scrapped – millions wasted

by Scott Carmichael on

It is no secret that the government can be a huge source of wasteful spending, but seldom is money wasted as swiftly as when it comes to purchases for our “national security”.

In 2004, the Department of Homeland Security purchased 207 “puffer machines” to deploy around the various airports.

These machines cost $160,000 each, and despite this insane price, they would break down quite regularly. Simple things like dirt and humidity could render the machines unusable, raising the yearly operating costs to just under $50,000 (per machine!).

Total loss: $33 Million.

Worst of all, only 94 of these expensive contraptions were actually put into service protecting us – the rest are still in a warehouse awaiting airport deployment, something that will never happen.

I hope they’ll be able to get a good price for them on Ebay, though I doubt they’ll ever fetch anything close to the $17 Million the taxpayer spent on them, even if they are new in box.

Scrapping the program won’t bother the TSA too much, they are about to spend close to $50 Million on those nifty new full body image scanners.

A week at the Dulles customs area – cocaine, porn and $35,000

by Scott Carmichael on

Traveling often sucks – but a sure way to make the end of your trip even worse, is to get one of those cryptic red messages scribbled all over your customs form when you pass through the immigration line.

I’ve been selected for a closer look at my belongings about 20 times, and it can be a massive pain in the backside.

Customs officials usually go through every single item in my bags, going so far as to turn on my laptop and take it to a small room where I’m guessing a forensics specialist is looking for dirty photos.

Still, I’ve never had anything to hide, so other than a major inconvenience, it isn’t really the end of the world.

That said – after reading a Customs and Border Protection press release about “a week in the life of Dulles Airport”, I’ve got a lot more understanding and respect for what the CBP does.
Here are some of the highlights of just one week:

  • Dagoberto Giraldo Perez was arrested on an outstanding DEA warrant for importing 11 pounds (or more) of cocaine into the US.
  • A Japanese traveler tried to enter the US with child porn DVDs, and another passenger arriving from Peru was carrying an insane 66 bestiality DVDs
  • A lady arriving on a flight from London landed at Dulles with $35,000 in US currency, but refused to declare it, despite repeated requests. She left the airport with $300 and will have to plead her case in a petition to claim the rest of it. There is nothing inherently wrong with carrying that much cash, but you do need to declare anything over $10,000.
  • 8 passengers were turned over to the local police on outstanding arrest warrants, mainly involving charges of theft, fraud and insufficient funds.
  • The “dumbest passenger of the week” at the customs desk was a passenger from Vietnam who failed to declare 6 pork sausages. The CBP agriculture specialists gave the man numerous opportunities to amend his customs declaration form, but he decided it would be more fun to just keep lying. He was fined $175.

Then of course, there are the usual passengers who lied on their customs forms and tried to hide items like sausages, Absinthe and Cuban cigars in their luggage. Customs agents even seized 2 bottles of vodka from a minor arriving from Germany

So there you have it – the results from just one airport, during one week.

What surprised me most, was how many passengers simply fail to understand what they are up against. It takes a very special kind of stupid to prefer lying about the items right in front of you and and being fined, than simply amending your declaration.

The US Customs and Border Protection agency has a site dedicated to educating you about the various rules and regulations regarding items you can (and can not) bring back to the country. Many of those rules are pretty straightforward, but the most important thing to remember is to not be an ass at the customs desk and to remember that lying to the agent is probably not in your best interests.

Check out these other stories from the airport checkpoint!

TSA targets new breed of WMDs: mules

by Jeffrey White on

If you are a mule skinner — that is, someone who drives mules — then you’ve got to register for special Transportation Security Administration clearance that amounts to a full background check, the same that other professions like truckers have to obtain.

That’s the latest ruling from one of our guardians of homeland security, at least.

The TSA is in a little row with the National Canal Museum in Easton, Penn. It’s one of those places were park workers dress up in period costumes and offer quaint canal rides on a boat that is pulled — at a stately 2mph — by two mules.

Now, I’ll hold off on the obvious question — why would want a mule-pulled canal ride in the first place? — to get to the heart of this controversy: Technically, the TSA argues, these park workers need to register for a biometric Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), which basically required for anyone who could possibly transport dangerous or deadly materials to be used in an act of terrorism (hence the reason truckers need them, for example).

By doing this, the TSA is essentially equating these mules (or perhaps more accurately, the barge they pull) as a potential terrorist threat — never mind that the canal along side of which these beasts walk does not pass any militarily or scientifically sensitive areas.

The park’s director of operations is lobbying her congressman to get this silly requirement waved. The congressman, Rep. Charles Dent (R-Pa.), has so far been rebuked by the TSA. Rules are rules, the TSA says — if you’re operating on water, you’re required to have both a credential from the Coast Guard and a TWIC (funny enough, the workers at this park actually have a Coast Guard credential!)

Now there’s a chance that things might work out for the two mules, whose names are Hank and George.

Congressman Dent confronted Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on Capitol Hill this week and asked her was it really necessary to perform background checks on two mule drivers in outdated clothing. He showed her a picture of Hank and George.

As quoted by CNN, Dent told Napolitano: “Now Hank and George, while sometimes they are ornery, they are not terrorists.” Napolitano said she’s look into the matter.

And you thought the TSA only enforced stupid rules at airports…

Check out these other stories from the airport checkpoint!

So, what exactly is in your Homeland Security travel file?

by Scott Carmichael on

Back in 2007, Jamie wrote an article outlining how to request getting your hands on your Homeland Security travel file.

Based on the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), anyone is allowed to request that federal agencies hand over the information they keep on file about you. There are of course a couple of exceptions, but your Homeland Security travel dossier is not one of them.

Of course, just outlining how to get this information is not that interesting, actually seeing one of these dossiers is the really good stuff.

Newsweek reporter Sean O’Neill put in his request, and received a large Homeland Security envelope with 20 photocopies containing his dossier.

So, what exactly is in the file? There is of course the usual stuff about where you went, and when you got back. The file listed all his ports of entry, as well as his passport information and various other pieces of data.

The bit that surprised me, was how much information was on file about how he paid for his tickets. Not only does the airline send the government your payment method, they even send the IP address of the computer used to make that purchase as well as any IP address assigned to a computer that was used for other things, like a seat assignment change.

Of course, none of this information is all that sensitive, but it’s obvious that the government is collecting a massive amount of information on every single traveler in the country. On the one hand, it’s a minor invasion of privacy, but on the other hand, if the government puts this information to good use, and masters the art of data mining, they may be able to halt the bad guys before they make it to the airport.

Either way, it’s a very interesting read, and it may prompt you to ask the government for access to your own file, or perhaps it’ll just remind you not to use Al Qaeda computers to pay for your next ticket.

Source: current.newsweek.com