Say ‘so long’ to controversial Sea-Tac X-ray scanners
Feb 25, 2013, 5:32 PM | Updated: Feb 26, 2013, 10:51 am
The Transportation Security Administration is expected to remove all 14 of the controversial "backscatter" full-body scanners at Sea-Tac Airport now in use by June.(AP image)
(AP image)
The Transportation Security Administration is expected to remove all 14 of the controversial “backscatter” full-body scanners at Sea-Tac Airport now in use by June.
A staff memo sent to Port of Seattle commissioners on Sunday says the TSA will begin replacing the scanners in April, and finish within two weeks, The Seattle Times reports. But Sea-Tac spokesman Perry Cooper says the memo obtained by the Times was dated and the TSA has actually not yet set a specific date for their removal, although the agency had previously set a June deadline nationwide.
The TSA began phasing out the Rapiscan scanners after the manufacturer admitted it couldn’t fix privacy issues that revealed naked images of passengers before a government-mandated deadline.
Along with privacy concerns, passenger-rights groups also complained about the safety of the low dose X-ray waves used by the machines. They’re being replaced by different scanners that use radiation-free millimeter wave technology to render images that appear like a cartoon rather than a nude body.
There’s no word yet from TSA or Sea-Tac about how many of the new scanners will be installed at Sea-Tac to replace the 14 “backscatter” machines now in use.
