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The health concerns of radiation exposure of backscatter X-ray have never been properly characterized at all. One specific concern that was raised with airport
by ak217 12y ago
The health concerns of radiation exposure of backscatter X-ray have never been properly characterized at all. One specific concern that was raised with airport scanners is that existing methods of estimating safety limit dosage simply don't work with backscatter, which deposits the majority of radiation in the surface layers of the subject (i.e. in the person's skin), which has much lower volume (and therefore higher radiation absorbed per volume) than the whole body. (http://www.ucsf.edu/news/2010/11/5810/ucsf-scientists-speak-out-against-airport-full-body-scans http://www.ucsf.edu/news/2010/11/5810/ucsf-scientists-speak-...)
The privacy concerns are peanuts compared to the potentially massive harm that the X-rays caused in terms of skin cancer susceptibility.
The worst case is pretty scary and regardless of the outcome, I think the government (we the taxpayers) will be on the hook for huge liability litigation in the future regarding these machines.
It has legitimate uses for scanning cargo, and I see little issue with imaging a car if there's nobody in it, but one of these things driving down the street irradiating everyone is potentially a massive health problem.
- tunap 12y ago"I see little issue with imaging a car if there's nobody in it" If you were to spend some time at a border checkpoint sitting in a chainlink cage(literally) in the accompaniment of other travelers as your vehicles are batch scanned you may change your mind. More so if that checkpoint happens to be located 100+ miles north of the border.
- 0x5f3759df-i 12y agoI think he is talking health concerns, not privacy concerns.
- jpmattia 12y ago> The health concerns of radiation exposure of backscatter X-ray have never been properly characterized at all. To amplify: The former head of homeland security profited handsomely from their approval. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/31/AR2009123102821.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12... I wouldn't want to be in his shoes if there is ever a larger-than-average number of cancers in the TSA agents. Even if it is merely statistical fluctuation, his conflict-of-interest may come back to haunt him in ways he has not anticipated.
- lostlogin 12y agoI may be more cynical than you but I'm pretty confident that being in his shoes won't be unpleasant whatever the outcome. The taxpayer will sort it all out.