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Grad student in hot water over fake boarding passes
Christopher Soghoian says he was just trying to highlight a flaw in the nation's airline security procedures when he put a tool on his website letting anyone create fake boarding passes. The FBI visited him a few days ago and hauled away his computers. (Washington Post)
November 1, 2006 | Permalink
Comments
It's a good thing we've removed his application from the web. And thank goodness there's absolutely no way to use an application like PhotoShop or MSPaint to alter the image of a boarding pass either. Thank you, government, for saving us from the "terrists." If it weren't for you guys stomping out the terror of phony boarding passes and 4-oz bottles of shampoo, the terrists would win!
Posted by: Howie Feltersnatch | Nov 1, 2006 6:01:36 AM
There is a lesson to be learned from all of this. If you want to start a website to highlight security problems, drive to another town and do it at Kinko's.
Posted by: Bill | Nov 1, 2006 6:44:19 AM
Meanwhile I saw a story the other day that in a security test 20 of 22 undercover TSA agents were able to sneak bombs, guns or knives through security at Newark Airport.
TSA response has been to go after the source that leaked out this test result.
Posted by: SwarthyTroll | Nov 1, 2006 7:13:24 AM
The lesson of this story: don't embarrass this government. You'll be lucky if property is all that is taken from you.
Posted by: Joe | Nov 1, 2006 7:34:05 AM
Swarthy,
the term used in the article sums your points up perfectly: "Security Theater"
Whether it was confiscating all of our nail clippers (so we could buy replacements in the terminal newsstand/giftshop) or we all take off our shoes, or must surrender our toothpaste, they're all designed to attempt to make us FEEL like we are being protected.
So while TSA is all wrapped up interrogating a 65 year old woman for having the audacity to share the same name as an 18 year old gang member who's presently incarcerated; Al Qaeda sits back and laughs because they don't have to do much of anything to terrorize the West -- Western governments are doing a tremendous job at scaring the crap out of their own citizens. Drop cloths and duct tape, anyone?
So for three years, this poor guy has been trying to inform our "public servants" that their security protocols are bunk, and gets nothing but crickets in response. So he provides a simple demonstration and gets detained, windows smashed, computers confiscated, mountains of legal bills, and probably is also on the "no-fly list" now. Gee, so much for actually making an attempt to improve security.
Oh that's right, "shoot the messenger!"
Howie, Photoshop isn't needed to alter boarding passes, a simple text editor (Notepad) could do the job. But I'd better not say any more lest my windows get smashed in as well.
Posted by: mianne | Nov 1, 2006 7:56:00 AM
I like that the congressman who initially called for his arrest later decided that thats the kind of kid they need working for them.
maybe we'd have a system that works instead of what we have now.
like people that are able to sneak WEAPONS through, while in other news we have a man who went into a COMA because they thought his INSULIN would blow up.
Posted by: boynamedsue | Nov 1, 2006 9:18:48 AM
Poor Americans. I don't want not to be put out in any way by people who are trying to keep contraband off of airplanes and I don't care if an old lady can't take her knitting needles on the plane or that about once a year or so I get pulled aside and searched and questioned. OK by me. We should have airlines for those who want to fly and die free of searches and those of us who don't care if we have to fly in our shorts so long as we can get home to our families. YOu want to whine then all whine together on "free" planes, the rest of us can suck it up and try to make the best of a bad situation. You will find that Arab Americans will fly on the restricted planes cuz they know what this is all about.
Posted by: TomW | Nov 1, 2006 11:53:54 AM
You know, if the threat were real I might agree. However this latest set of hoops air travelers are forced to jump through (this liquids-in-the-baggie stuff) were instigated by some British zealots without much knowledge of Chemistry and leapt upon by TSA officials who've been watching too many cheap Hollywood movies. Of course the Feds are always eager to ratchet up the tension, especially when a Republican congress is in jeoparday.
Personally I wouldn't mind it if the airlines and the TSA developed effective anti-terrorist measures (along the lines of El Al) but they begin to resemble too much profiling and we all know how bad THAT is.
I'd feel better if I knew the DHS had someone in charge who knew what he was doing. Someone like this guy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncle_Fester_%28author%29
Posted by: d_m_arnold | Nov 1, 2006 12:11:25 PM
Actually this "security theater" has got me worried. Sure it's good that they've caught some things, apparently. But how come there are still things like this that are so easy? Are we just lucky some dumb hacker figured it out before any terror group? How many other such gaps are there? (Don't say there are too many - after 5 years a systematic look at potential security gaps should have covered a lot).
Posted by: S.O. | Nov 1, 2006 1:04:02 PM
Plugging security holes is a lot like plugging bugs in complicated software. The system works correctly only one way (i.e. everyone behaves themselves) but can fail in an infinite number of ways. No one can predict them all.
Consequently the response is reactionary -- we found one bug so we'll stop it from ever happening again. Hence a longer and longer list of stuff you can't bring on board 'til they take all your luggage, and your clothes and make you wear a disposable paper robe enroute. Even then they can't stop a determined terrorist having a bomb sewn into his gut.
My problem is with it is there are things that make sense (stopping people from bringing guns, knives, sharp pointy objects = GOOD) and things that don't make sense (prohibiting baby formula, bottled water=STUPID).
My solution for ultimate safety: Make everyone fly in the nude and put all the luggage into a separate glider that's towed behind the main aircraft.
Posted by: d_m_arnold | Nov 1, 2006 1:25:16 PM
S.O.; if they had been systematically looking for security gaps for 5 years, then there wouldn't be so many.
Unfortunately, up until right before the elections, the recommendations of the 9-11 commission sat on a back burner, as they weren't as important an item as banning gay marriage or making sure a woman in Florida wasn't taken off life support. The few things the Republicans allowed out of committee to be voted on, they refused to fully fund. Even the funding they agreed on was lowered by the White House.
Some of the senators and congressmen of my state have tried for the last 5 years to pass legislation that would help in securing our airports, ports and railroads. But they're Democrats, so the legislation was allowed to die in committee, over and over and over.
The smartest thing we could do as citizens would be to think "if I were a terrorist, how would I go about beig one?" and then demanding that those holes we find are plugged.
Posted by: David | Nov 1, 2006 1:27:22 PM
I highly recommend Bruce Schneier's _Beyond Fear_
(http://www.schneier.com/book-beyondfear.html) for those who want a take on what's Security Theater and what actually works.
Posted by: | Nov 1, 2006 2:11:12 PM
Airports will never be secure as long as there is a lot of ruckus on political correctness. The way the legal system is here, I wouldn't be surprised if a would-be terrorist sues the government because he wasn't allowed on a plane.
Posted by: Cameltoes | Nov 2, 2006 7:54:41 PM
