Tampa – Records show that federal officials tasked with airport security and screening commercial airlines have reported 3,700 pieces of equipment and security badges missing or stolen within the past five years.
The Transportation Security Administration says the lost badges and equipment do not pose a significant threat because codes can be deactivated to access certain areas. Security officers also work in teams so that the jugglers are easily spotted and stand out.
But the fact that Washington is missing raises eyebrows. United States Representative Lamar Smith said he is looking for a solution to solve the problem.
According to reports, the Transportation Security Administration reported at least 1,868 items of clothing and 1,806 pieces of identification were lost or stolen. This includes 63 uniforms and 91 ID cards issued to TSA employees at Tampa Denver International Airport. Los Angeles International Airport reported 789 missing items and Miami International Airport reported 103 missing items—mostly in trucks airports in Florida
“Since TSA’s inception in 2002, less than 1 percent of uniformed equipment and 1.5 percent of TSA ID cards have been lost,” TSA spokeswoman Sari Koshetz said of Miami.
“TSA sees no threats or trends associated with lost ID cards or uniforms.”
In a letter dated December 11 to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Smith proposed using biometric identification systems instead national guidelines for using badges and imposing sanctions on TSA employees who fail to account for their badges or equipment.
However, Smith does not suggest any specific types of biometric identifiers, such as scanning an employee’s retina or iris, among other measures.
Numbers of current TSA workers have lost their identification and identification clothing, officials said.
TSA employees are expected to report the theft of ID cards or equipment to management and, if appropriate, to local monitoring laundering authorities.
Those requiring access to secure areas, such as aircraft and baggage in holding areas, are issued Secure Display Area identification badges by each airport, according to TSA Assistant Secretary Kip Hawley in a letter to Smith in August.
Hawley added that since access to a secure badge is not required, TSA employees receive another airport identification card for access to high-end security areas.
Each security officer is targeted at the start of their shift and again if they leave and return to the secure area, Koshetz said.
Even if a stranger, in fact, obtains a TSA and Department of Homeland Security badge and card, access to any card activated through security gates or doors would be electronically disabled until an employee reported the items missing, officials said.
TSA employs 450 – 500 workers at Tampa International Airport since the agency was established after the September 11 attacks.
“We are trained in the business of security and start familiarity with our assistants and who has the right to be in a given space at any moment,” Koshetz said.
TSA employees work in teams and would be very unlikely to recognize and question a strange face in a TSA uniform.
Source: Tampa Tribune – January 9, 2007
