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How (Not) to Run Background Checks
Posted May 4, 2005 – 8:37 am by Yakov Shafranovich in PoliticsUSA Today is running a story about new guidelines on background checks from the Transportation Security Administration:
The federal government plans to begin collecting the full names and birth dates of air travelers this summer in its latest effort to screen passengers for possible links to terrorism. In a few weeks, the Transportation Security Administration will notify airlines, travel agents and online reservation systems that they will be required to ask travelers for their legal names and birth dates when booking domestic flights. Travelers will be encouraged — but not required — to give the personal information. Under the current system, only a last name and first initial are needed to reserve a flight. Passengers who don’t comply with the request will dramatically increase their chances of being stopped at airports for questioning or pat-downs, TSA Assistant Administrator Justin Oberman said. That’s because their partial names are more likely to register a “hit” on terrorist watch lists.
Now I have a stupid question - given that the information is being provided by passengers voluntary and no one verifies it, what stops a terrorist from lying? Is any terrorist actually stupid enough to travel under their real name?
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