Transportation

Facial recognition scans to be deployed in U.K. this summer
U.K. government plans to deploy facial recognition scanners at U.K. airport this summer; scanner will allow for automatic security checks at gates
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Indonesia runs airport bird flu drill
Indonesia is the nation worst hit by the bird flu so far, with 107 dead since the first human case appeared here in 2005; authorities run a bird flu detection drill at the Bali airport
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Government scrapping virtual fence on Arizona-Mexico border
Boeing’s Project 28 — showcasing advanced technologies to be used in making U.S. borders more secure — was hobbled from the start by technological glitches and delays; it delivered much less than what was promised, and DHS decides to scrap it
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DHS proposes biometric airport and seaport exit procedures
Moving to implement one more recommendation of the 9/11 Commission, DHS announces that by 30 June 2009 all visitors leaving the United States will have their biometric details taken and recorded
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Travelers uneasy about new airport security device
Scanner can see through clothing to search for concealed weapons; travelers have diverse opinions about its use
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Safety in (random) numbers
USC researchers posit that a key to airport security is making security unpredictable (from the point of view of a potential terrorist); there is a difference between merely mixing things up and making police operations truly, systematically random
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Millimeter wave scanners to be deployed at JFK, LAX
At JFK, passengers sent to secondary screening will be given the option of a pat-down or a trip through the body imager; at LAX, the millimeter wave machine will be located just beyond the checkpoint magnetometers
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New methods for detecting IEDs
Improvised explosive devices (IEDs) have exerted a painful toll on coalition forces in Iraq, and now in Afghanistan; DHS is worried that IEDs will soon make their deadly appearance on U.S. soil; Wolverines researchers offer a novel methods for detecting IEDs
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U.K. to set up massive national drivers' surveillance scheme
Hundreds of monitoring stations would be used to track cars every five seconds — with daily itemized accounts of all trips made by Britain’s thirty million drivers; move is part of a national pay-as-you-drive road pricing plan; government says plan will reduce congestion and pollution
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Quota for visas for professionals met on first day; lottery set
US authorities said Tuesday they had received too many applications for a visa program for skilled workers for the coming year, meaning a random lottery will determine the winners
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Behavioral observation program questioned
TSDA has been training security officers in behavioral observation, then placed them in major U.S. airports to observe passengers and note suspicious behavior; in the past four years, 104,000 passengers were pulled out of line to answer to more serious security measures, but fewer than 700 were arrested – all on criminal, rather than terror, charges; critics are not sure the $45 million annual tab is justified
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Kinder, gentler security checkpoints
TSA wants to try a new approach to airport security checkpoints: Mauve lights glowing softly, soothing music hums, smiling employees offer quiet greetings and assistance
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Israeli carriers on high alert
Number of security guards on flights boosted, helicopters escort takeoffs and arrivals in several airports worldwide for fear of missile launching; fear of Hezbollah’s attack
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Ballast-free cargo ship design to reduce invasion of non-native species
As worries about non-native species invading the great Lakes mount, Wolverines researchers develop ballast-free cargo ship design; at least 185 non-native aquatic species have been identified in the Great Lakes, and ballast water is blamed for the introduction of most
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EU drops border security controls with 9 more countries
Nine more countries enter the Schengen area as of Sunday; air border checks will no longer be necessary for European passengers to go to of from these new area members
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