I recently read an article at
Huffington Post titled: Is The TSA's Pre Check Program A Recipe For Disaster? The easy answer
to this question is no, but that wouldn’t make much of a blog post, now would
it?
TSA Pre✓™ enables us to move away from the one-size-fits-all
approach to transportation security. It improves security by using intelligence
and information volunteered by passengers to help us make informed decisions
about the level of threat. You can read more about TSA Pre✓™ by clicking here, but I’d
like to help clarify a few things I read in the article. TSA Pre✓™ improves the customer experience by expediting
the screening process and allowing travelers to keep 3-1-1 and laptops in their
bag. Shoes and outwear too can stay on.
On Mistakenly Being
Screened Through TSA Pre✓™: If you’re randomly chosen to be screened through a
TSA Pre✓™ lane, it’s not a mistake. Not all TSA Pre✓™ members are affiliated with Global Entry, SENTRI or
NEXUS. Many were selected by participating airlines based upon TSA established
criteria and opted-in through the airline’s system at no charge. There are many
ways to opt-in to TSA Pre✓™. Sometimes the opt-in is as simple as clicking “yes”
on a pop-up box when you sign into your mileage account. The airlines have
included several different methods (mail, e-mail, pop-up boxes when you login,
account profile update alerts) to opt-in.
On Having to Pay to Join
TSA Pre✓™: You don’t
have to pay to join TSA Pre✓™. That’s right, while
paying to join Global Entry, SENTRI or NEXUS is an option, many members have
been selected by airlines and at no charge.
On Identity Fraud
Concerns: No security plan is without
some level of risk. You’ll never hear us say that security is 100% effective.
There are just too many variables involved. Administrator Pistole said it best
in a recent letter to the editor: “TSA has created a layered security approach so that all
passengers who go through checkpoints, including those in the TSA “PreCheck”
program, are subject to multiple security measures including behavior
detection, screening and canine assessment that secure travelers and our
nation’s aviation system.”
So, rather than thinking TSA
Pre✓™ is a recipe for disaster, I hope you now understand
that it’s more of a recipe for success.
If
you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you
can contact us by clicking here.
