The TSA's Secret Behavior Checklist to Spot Terrorists



From a confidential Transportation Security Administration document that was leaked to The Intercept by, according to them, "a source concerned about the quality of the program," comes this checklist of behaviors said by the TSA to be indicative of possible terrorist activity. The checklist is a guide for TSA agents to score suspects at the airport. It is part of a controversial protocol called SPOT, an acronym that stands for Screening of Passengers by Observation Techniques. Each behavior on the checklist that is identified in a suspect scores them "points." 

Part of the list of behaviors reads as follows:

  • Excessive Throat Clearing
  • Exaggerated Yawning

After flying home from my last vacation still suffering from the remnants of a virus, its safe to say I could have been classified as dangerous based on those two behaviors alone.

Read more on this story and see copies of the TSA documents in question, which include the other behaviors that mark airline passengers as suspicious, at The Intercept


Comments (8)

Newest 5
Newest 5 Comments

... And here I am, a middle-aged male of Middle-Eastern descent. Used to pulled out on most flights and somehow now qualify for the "walk on through" line. My only suggestion is to smile and be cooperative. Seems to have worked for me.
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
Yeah, I thought of that at the time, and I get that it's a good hiding place. But I think if they're going to make it a policy to lift wheelchair bound people out of their chairs and forbid their loved ones to be near them when it happens, they need to have someone on their staff trained to do so in a gentle, compassionate manner that doesn't risk hurting them. They also need to treat the disabled person in a polite way, and not act like they are an inconvenience purposely holding up their line.
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
Unfortunately, 'old person in wheelchair' actually -is- a red flag for a possible drug mule simply because the smugglers are hoping people will feel bad for the elder and not check them or their chair. See also 'pregnant woman' and 'small child'. Also, you can get a lot more stuff packed into a chair.
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
This is without doubt Thor's fisching hammer, "Troutnir" ... a very light version for nordic god trout fisching...

It throws like a hammer, hits like a harpoon and returns like a boomerang...

slightly less romantic than trout fisching in "A river runs through it" but way more effective..

Thor also has a "sharknir", a "tunir" and a "merlinir" for offshore-fisching...

The only reason it only has a limited success at market resides in that you have to be a nordic god to be able to properly operate this supreme fisching gear...

http://www.neatoshop.com/product/Heres-Cheshire

Ladie's fit size S
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
It's a manually operated second hand! These were commonplace before advances in spring technology drove hundreds of second-hand men out of business. It would be years before the minutemen and their hourly brethren would feel the sting ...

Kwisatz Haderach, chocolate, 4x
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
This is my daddy's good old direction finder. He never read a map in his life and whenever he got lost he'd whip this trusty old direction finder out and stick it out the car door window and follow the direction the arrow pointed. Did it work? Well... let's just say that one time I was 3 months late starting school...
Chemists do it in an excited state Men's Large Turquoise
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
Instead of a bottle, carpenters use this when playing spin the bottle. After kissing the person the arrow points to, they pound the ground with the opposite end and yell "Nailed it!".
The Love Bug, 2x, Charcoal
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
“You are here.”
A predecessor (ancient Scottish origin) to the modern GPS positioning and direction system. It was limited to locating only one place at a time.

Genetic Replicants - Black - XL
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
Ever had your mouse freeze up and the cursor refuse to move? Whack that little arrow on the screen a couple of times with this baby and set your cursor free!

Time and Space, Navy, XXL
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
It looks like a panelbeater's tool for reshaping crumpled car body-panel corners from the inside.
It has a flat pein on the other side for flattening any ridges or bumps caused in the reshaping operation.
- mens xxl (116cm chest)
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
Login to comment.
Email This Post to a Friend
"The TSA's Secret Behavior Checklist to Spot Terrorists"

Separate multiple emails with a comma. Limit 5.

 

Success! Your email has been sent!

close window
X

This website uses cookies.

This website uses cookies to improve user experience. By using this website you consent to all cookies in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

I agree
 
Learn More