Companies Prepare Airport Security Technology

Imagine this scenario: Upon arrival at the airport, you show the ticket agent your government-issued identification card, place your thumb in a fingerprint reader to verify your identity, and it gets checked against a database of known terrorists. Once cleared, you're given a smart card containing, in encrypted form, flight information and your biometrics scan. The security team at the departure gate will use that card to match you against a second fingerprint reading taken just before boarding. Meanwhile, your luggage is being scanned for dangerous materials, and attached with radio-frequency tracking tags to assure it gets on the plane untampered. The system also verifies that only luggage of those passengers actually on the plane is loaded. "These technologies are not just in James Bond movies, but are ready to be deployed today," said Robert Atkinson, vice president of the Progressive Policy Institute, a nonprofit think tank funded by the Democratic Leadership Council, a group dedicated to introducing new economy ideas to the Democratic party.Cost-effective equipment is available. The National Business Travelers Association, for instance, estimates that advanced airport security screenings can be funded by surcharges of as little as $3 per passenger per flight. And integrators, such as Electronic Data Systems Corp., Plano, Texas, and Maximus Inc., Reston, Va., are already offering biometrics-based services and solutions to secure airports against terrorist threats.The security system described previously could be in place as soon as 2005, Atkinson said. The Progressive Policy Institute released Sept. 26 a report, "How Technology Can Help Make Air Travel Safe Again," detailing how advanced technologies can be used in airline security.The Senate passed a bill Oct. 11 that would give the Federal Aviation Administration $50 million annually 2002 through 2006 to develop advanced technologies in explosives detection, baggage and passenger screening, security system integration and aircraft hardening materials. The Aviation and Security Act, S. 1447, also would provide $20 million in grants to contract long-term research in conjunction with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in weapons detection, information sharing, biometrics and other relevant technologies.These funding provisions are included in Title II of the Aviation and Security Act, sponsored by Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., calling for expanded aviation security oversight through enhanced technologies and procedures.The Senate bill mandates that aviation security be managed by a federal work force, while a House version gives this responsibility to the private sector. Although the outcome of this debate is unknown, Washington observers expect Congress to pass a compromise bill with some level of funding for developing aviation security technology.An airportwide biometrics system could cost between $300,000 and $750,000 per airport, Atkinson said. And though it would not guarantee safety against all possible terrorist attacks, it would reduce the risks considerably.For Atkinson, biometrics adds a second form of verification missing in today's security measures. He recounted a story in which a secured area of an airport required a pass code to enter, though the actual code was written above the keypad for employees who had forgotten it. "If you buy a biometrics system, the odds of it being breached by something like that are dramatically reduced," Atkinson said. According to the report, law enforcement agencies had pictures of at least two of the hijackers who participated in the Sept. 11 attacks, and airport cameras had also photographed them in the airport that day. What was needed was a real-time biometrics identification system that could make matches and alert airport security forces of the suspects. The Progressive Policy Institute is not the only organization calling for the reform of the nation's airport security systems. In October, the Transportation Department issued "Report of the Secretary's Rapid Response Team on Airport Security: Meeting the Airport Security Challenge" that contained significant recommendations."There is an urgent need to establish a voluntary means by which passengers might submit to an effective prescreening regimen and, thereby, qualify for more expedited processing," the report said. The FAA was working on improving security technology before Sept. 11. One agency program is the Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System, or CAPPS, implemented in 1997, which aggregates traveler flight history and flags potential security risks for more exhaustive baggage checking.The Senate Aviation Security bill mandates that CAPPS extend its scope to all passengers, not just those checking luggage.Atkinson applauds CAPPS, but said it could be augmented by a biometrics system to check if the person is who he says he is.Industry has been responding as well. In October, Maximus released a smart-card and biometrics-based solution, called FlySecure. Using FlySecure, an airport could take passengers' fingerprints and run background checks on them. The prints can also be placed on smart cards.All the technology is off-the-shelf and ready to be pressed into action today, according to Maximus. Before rolling out FlySecure, Maximus had developed smart-card applications for the Defense Department and Veterans Affairs and offers solutions under a General Services Administration schedule.Jeffrey Planton, a senior vice president for federal government for EDS, said his company has already installed one airport biometrics system, though he could not identify the airport, citing reasons of security.EDS is in a unique position to complete such work, thanks to its experience with the federal government and access security. According to Planton, the company has completed large contracts supplying security systems for three major airlines, as well as completed work for two important airline reservation systems. Planton said a system such as the one advocated by the Progressive Policy Institute would not only improve security, it also would reduce the time customers spend waiting in line to board planes. Frequent flyers could use a kiosk to prequalify, said Planton, shortening the line for check in. The American Civil Liberties Union has opposed using biometrics technology in airports because of privacy concerns. But the National Business Travelers Association, an organization for corporate travelers, said its members have said they are willing to sacrifice privacy for increased safety. NBTA is supporting the aviation security bill, including the use of stringent security precautions, said Allison Marble, a spokeswoman for the group."We're already on the record in favor of increased use of CAPPS screening program, and biometrics would follow in that direction. For now, we don't have any privacy concerns," Marble said. "Travelers we have surveyed are willing to undergo some inconvenience for greater security."