TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones • Hacker News Board

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#31

Post by bakareika » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 5:34 AM UTC

tommoor wrote: post #6

They do this at Ben Gurion Airport too - make you turn on all your electronics, the Israeli airports are praised for their security procedures - right? eg: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/23/airport-security_n_...

Israeli here, flying to Europe couple of times/year. They don't make you turn on all electronics in Ben Gurion, that's just not true; asked me to boot up my laptop once or twice (probably because it can be used as a case for explosives due to its size), but not cellphone or an iPod.

Maybe they do check Muslims more thoroughly, that would make sense. I never took any interest in it, so cannot confirm it. (In the Army, I would totally pay much more attention to Arabs than to other civilians, but that's so painfully obvious, right?)

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#32

Post by rhizome » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 5:39 AM UTC

jliechti1 wrote: post #4

"TSA will not disclose which airports will be conducting the additional screening, although it will be at some airports with direct flights to the U.S. Industry data show that more than 250 foreign airports offer nonstop service to the U.S." Prediction: after some time, they will just roll out this policy everywhere - including US domestic airports.

Prediction: they will not say anything further and use it in completely arbitrary ways whenever and wherever they want.

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#33

Post by bakareika » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 5:43 AM UTC

objclxt wrote: post #27

ninguem2 wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you are an Orthodox Jew, I don't think you can turn on a cellphone on the Sabbath.

This is actually a very good point...I wonder if there will be a religious exemption. Some Orthodox Jews can be exceptionally strict (I once was on a delayed flight where we had to offload some of the passengers, since due to the delays their connecting flight would have taken place on the Sabbath).

While an Orthodox Jew cannot directly ask you to take his cellphone and turn it on, he or she will be indifferent to you taking and power cycling it voluntarily. It's the intent and activity that's considered sinful, not state of the device per se.

Also it's perfectly normal to leave a phone powered on for a Sabbath, if you don't actively use it. Same applies to e.g. elevators, that just cruise in an endless loop and stop on every floor. You can ride in it, as long as you aren't the operator.

Source: living in Israel for many years.

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#34

Post by reitanqild » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 6:05 AM UTC

angersock wrote: post #29

chimeracoder wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Israel openly practices racial profiling of passengers[0], something which is not legal in the US (which must instead practice it in secret)[1][2]. I would not want to use Israel's security procedures as a model for the US for a number of reasons - the unabashed racial profiling is one, but a more basic reason is the fact that Israel faces a very real and direct threat, whereas the TSA itself admits that there is no…

They've also done a remarkably good job of pissing off a lot of their neighbors.

Historic background:

* they have done so since they were created by UN in 1948

* all neighbouring countries declared war on them then. As far as I know only one of them has since retracted their declaration of war.

Edit: Is it downvoted because of factual inaccuracies, tone, relevance or something else? Honest question, I have noe clue.

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#35

Post by darklajid » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 6:12 AM UTC

tommoor wrote: post #6

They do this at Ben Gurion Airport too - make you turn on all your electronics, the Israeli airports are praised for their security procedures - right? eg: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/23/airport-security_n_...

Whenever that model is considered nice I try to paint a different picture. Example: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3283768#up_3285789

I've lived there for a year and travelled to Ben Gurion before and after that time. It's never pleasant and often downright insane.

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#36

Post by fit2rule » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 6:28 AM UTC

jonjenk wrote: post #11

Would someone please start a religion that denies the authority of the TSA so we can opt out of this security theater on religious grounds?

See kids, religion has its uses ..

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#37

Post by gcb0 » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 6:30 AM UTC

http://xkcd.com/651/

and by turning it on you just proved you have the materials for a bomb. touche.

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#38

Post by tlrobinson » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 6:31 AM UTC

Because it's impossible to build a cell phone bomb that also functions?

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#39

Post by ivanca » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 6:39 AM UTC

higherpurpose wrote: post #30

imchillyb wrote: post #3

This has to be one of the silliest moves yet. What a monstrous waste the TSA is. A waste in resources better utilized elsewhere.

TSA is not a waste. It's a business model (for some).

Is just a start-up that went big; the security business was just begging for disruption.

Re: TSA: Some on US-bound flights must turn on phones

#40

Post by ivanca » Mon, Jul 07, 2014, 6:45 AM UTC

You also have to press all the possible combination of numbers on your device, just to make sure there isn't one to activate a bomb. You also have to open all the apps in your smartphone, just in case one of them is "open to blow the bomb".