February 27, 2007 | Funny Bits

Airport X-rays see thru clothes

Remember those X-ray specs you could order from the backs of comic books? They would have been a voyeur's dream come true, if only they had worked. Now the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has started using its own version of  X-ray specs at Phoenix's Sky Harbour International Airport. And this new generation of airport security machines is so good they can see right through your clothes.

The technology has been labeled "a virtual strip search" by the American Civil Liberties Union because security workers can see the contours of the scannee's nude body. 

But TSA officials say they have worked with industry specialists to blur any images of body parts generated by the scan, comparing the resulting picture to a "chalk outline" of a person. They also say the machine does not have the ability to save or store images, a concern expressed by privacy-rights groups.

Still we can't help but wonder when the first super xrays will somehow find their way onto the Internet, the next generation of "hidden cam" photos.

• Critics: new airport x-ray is a virtual strip search [CNET News]