Watchlist 101
News & Happenings
October 7, 2007
Watchlists are a critical and effective tool in keeping known terrorists off airplanes and a key component of aviation security.
The Terrorist Screening Center, which is part of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, maintains the U.S. government's Consolidated Terrorist Watchlist. The Terrorist Screening Center allows all government agencies, including DHS and the Department of State, to run name checks against the same comprehensive list with the most accurate, up-to-date information about known and suspected terrorists.
TSA is a major customer of the Terrorist Screening Center, using their information to determine Selectees, people who are subject to extra screening, and No Fly individuals, who are not permitted to board a plane under any circumstances. The number of people on the No Fly and Selectee lists is classified, but the number is much less than 755,000.
Today, the government has to rely on the airlines – including international carriers – to do watchlist matching. While the security benefit of this system is sound, there is evidence that many ordinary passengers get wrongly drawn into the no-fly filter of a given airline.
DHS initiated a program called TRIP to assist people who have names similar to someone on the watchlist and experience an inconvenience in getting a boarding pass. Between February 20, 2007, and October 17, 2007, DHS TRIP recorded approximately 15,000 requests for redress in its redress management system, and more than half of the cases - approximately 8,500 - have been resolved. The remaining cases are waiting further input from the traveler.
Much of this problem will be addressed when Secure Flight is implemented. It will bring the watchlist-matching process inside the government, and should solve the "false positive" issue where ordinary passengers have to explain that they are not the person on the list. The Secure Flight comment period remains open through November 21.
TSA is working with the Congress to fund the program as part of Fiscal Year 2008 appropriations. When Secure Flight is up and running, the trip through the airport will be easier for passengers and more difficult for those who would do us harm.
- To learn more about the Terrorist Screening Center, click here.
- To learn more about DHS Trip or make an inquiry online, click here.
- To read Administrator Kip Hawley's recent DHS Leadership Journal post on Secure Flight, click here.
- To learn more about the Secure Flight program, click here.
