Body scanners that allow security screeners to be able to see beneath
passenger's clothing to detect concealed weapons have been installed in New York
City and Los Angeles airports.
 The machines, which are about the size of a
revolving door, use low-energy electromagnetic waves to produce a computerized
image of a traveler's entire body. Passengers step in and lift their arms.
The scans only take a minute and the procedure is less invasive than a physical
frisk for knives, bombs or guns according to the Transportation Security
Administration. Someday, the "millimeter wave" scans might
replace metal detectors, but for now they are being used selectively.
Phoenix Sky-Harbor International Airport got one of the machines in October.
Los Angeles International Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport in
New York had their first scanners installed Thursday, each at a single
checkpoint. Modest travelers may have concerns about the images. The
black and white, three-dimensional scans aren't as vivid as a photograph, but
they do reveal some of the more intimate curves of the human form, maybe with as
much clarity as an impressionist sculpture. TSA officials say the system
comes with privacy protections. Officers reviewing the images don't interact
with passengers, or even see them. They sit in a separate area, look at the
pictures on a monitor and push a button to either clear travelers or alert
security about a suspicious item. Images will not be recorded or stored.
Passenger faces are blurred to further protect their identities.
For now, the scans will also be voluntary. Flyers selected for a secondary
screening after passing through the metal detectors will have the option of
stepping into the wave scanner, rather than undergoing a physical pat-down.
"We're giving people a choice," said TSA spokeswoman Lara Uselding.
Barry Steinhardt, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's program on
technology and liberty, said he nevertheless had concerns. "The
images that I've seen are quite revealing," he said. "I guarantee you
that as this gets more commonly used, you'll be seeing these images on the
Internet."
The TSA said the scanners, which cost as much as $120,000 apiece, are already
in limited use at international airports in seven countries and at a handful of
courthouses and jails in five states. Their introduction to U.S. airports
is on a trial basis while authorities evaluate their effectiveness.
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