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Is this ban just typical security theater? Surely a device which does have explosives in it is going to be problematic in the hold too. Why not fix the actual p

Is this ban just typical security theater? Surely a device which does have explosives in it is going to be problematic in the hold too. Why not fix the actual problem and upgrade the protocol for checking devices when going through security. They already go through the X-ray machine and are often dusted for chemicals. Is anybody really comfortable putting a $1k laptop in a hold bag which far too often gets lost/stolen/broken? Also seems like a very easy way to have lots of people's data get stolen (most people aren't encrypting their devices).

kabdib 10y ago
It'd be interesting to put tamper-evident seals on the data ports of any machines you are forced to put in checked luggage.
- pavel_lishin 10y ago
  With that level of paranoia, I'd be more likely to Fedex my laptop overnight, inside a ziploc bag with evidence tape covering it - since I believe that the TSA is allowed to open and inspect any luggage, whereas Fedex/UPS/etc doesn't open packages in transit (as far as I'm aware).
  - dx034 10y ago
    If you ship from the UK to the US, the package can be opened to check for security threats (probably if it looks odd on the xray). Happened to me several times. Everything transported on a plane has to be checked to avoid having a bomb on a cargo plane.
- angry_octet 10y ago
  Put the whole thing into a tamper evident bag. Very cheap, and more resistant to evil maid attacks. Get the type made of Mylar foil with sequential numbering. Pack the battery on the outside if you can, or there might be an easy reason for them to open the bag. Also, if power is available they may try to operate it through the bag, poking tiny wires through the plastic to touch the USB ports. If you stick some unexposed 400 ISO B&W photographic film, spiral wound with alfoil to increasing thickness, in an opaque envelope, into the pouch you can see how many times they x-rayed it, vs other items; c.f. dosimeter.
  - kabdib 10y ago
    I like the dosimeter idea. With a whole bag, there are plausible reasons for opening the bag. If port seals are defeated, there's little reason other than data-level intrusion. (Also want to seal case screws in the same way).
StavrosK 10y ago
Who the hell puts explosives in electronics? Even more so, who puts explosives in electronics that will have no other option if laptops are forbidden?!
- mikeash 10y ago
  It's not too uncommon. Pan Am 103 was brought down by a bomb built into a portable tape player, for example. Electronics are a good place to hide bombs because the complex internal structure makes it hard to notice explosives when they're x-rayed. This is why you have to send laptops through the x-ray machine separately and why they'll sometimes ask you to turn it on to prove that it works (so you can't hollow it out completely and just use the case for your bomb). You'd have other options, but nothing that large. Size does matter. Pan Am 103 is about as small as a bomb can possibly be and still destroy the airplane, and even that was only possible because of an extremely unlucky placement of the bomb within the cargo hold.
- Symbiote 10y ago
  In 2010, two bombs concealed in laser printer cartridges were found in freight planes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_planes_bomb_plot https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_planes_bomb_plot
- justin66 10y ago
  Presumably, someone who doesn't want to carry big, round, black bombs with a fuse sticking out of the top, with the text "BOMB" painted on the side. There really aren't a huge number of options left for concealing a small amount of explosives, given the current restrictions on pretty much everything we take onto airplanes.
- EGreg 10y ago
  I always wondered: what is the point of taking laptops out of your bag and putting them in a separate tray?
  - vilya 10y ago
    It's so the scanner operators can tell there's nothing hidden underneath your laptop. I'm not sure whether the laptop case (or just the battery?) can actually block the scanners, or it just makes the output image harder to interpret. Either way, I guess they want to be sure...

kabdib 10y ago

It'd be interesting to put tamper-evident seals on the data ports of any machines you are forced to put in checked luggage.

pavel_lishin 10y ago
With that level of paranoia, I'd be more likely to Fedex my laptop overnight, inside a ziploc bag with evidence tape covering it - since I believe that the TSA is allowed to open and inspect any luggage, whereas Fedex/UPS/etc doesn't open packages in transit (as far as I'm aware).
- dx034 10y ago
  If you ship from the UK to the US, the package can be opened to check for security threats (probably if it looks odd on the xray). Happened to me several times. Everything transported on a plane has to be checked to avoid having a bomb on a cargo plane.
angry_octet 10y ago
Put the whole thing into a tamper evident bag. Very cheap, and more resistant to evil maid attacks. Get the type made of Mylar foil with sequential numbering. Pack the battery on the outside if you can, or there might be an easy reason for them to open the bag. Also, if power is available they may try to operate it through the bag, poking tiny wires through the plastic to touch the USB ports. If you stick some unexposed 400 ISO B&W photographic film, spiral wound with alfoil to increasing thickness, in an opaque envelope, into the pouch you can see how many times they x-rayed it, vs other items; c.f. dosimeter.
- kabdib 10y ago
  I like the dosimeter idea. With a whole bag, there are plausible reasons for opening the bag. If port seals are defeated, there's little reason other than data-level intrusion. (Also want to seal case screws in the same way).

StavrosK 10y ago

Who the hell puts explosives in electronics? Even more so, who puts explosives in electronics that will have no other option if laptops are forbidden?!

mikeash 10y ago
It's not too uncommon. Pan Am 103 was brought down by a bomb built into a portable tape player, for example. Electronics are a good place to hide bombs because the complex internal structure makes it hard to notice explosives when they're x-rayed. This is why you have to send laptops through the x-ray machine separately and why they'll sometimes ask you to turn it on to prove that it works (so you can't hollow it out completely and just use the case for your bomb). You'd have other options, but nothing that large. Size does matter. Pan Am 103 is about as small as a bomb can possibly be and still destroy the airplane, and even that was only possible because of an extremely unlucky placement of the bomb within the cargo hold.
Symbiote 10y ago
In 2010, two bombs concealed in laser printer cartridges were found in freight planes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_planes_bomb_plot https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_planes_bomb_plot
justin66 10y ago
Presumably, someone who doesn't want to carry big, round, black bombs with a fuse sticking out of the top, with the text "BOMB" painted on the side. There really aren't a huge number of options left for concealing a small amount of explosives, given the current restrictions on pretty much everything we take onto airplanes.
EGreg 10y ago
I always wondered: what is the point of taking laptops out of your bag and putting them in a separate tray?
- vilya 10y ago
  It's so the scanner operators can tell there's nothing hidden underneath your laptop. I'm not sure whether the laptop case (or just the battery?) can actually block the scanners, or it just makes the output image harder to interpret. Either way, I guess they want to be sure...