4 ms·

I'd like to see this test repeated, but with investigators smuggling bottled water instead of weapons. I bet the TSA would have a much higher success rate with

I'd like to see this test repeated, but with investigators smuggling bottled water instead of weapons. I bet the TSA would have a much higher success rate with that.

eli 11y ago
I bet I could get a bottle of water through if I were attempting to evade detection.
- feverishaaron 11y ago
  Congratulations! You're on the no-fly list.
- mc808 11y ago
  Assuming they let you carry an empty bottle and distillation equipment, this should be pretty easy.
  - vlucas 11y ago
    They do let you carry empty bottles through - even large ones. I always take my filtered water bottle through empty and fill it on the other side.
- mikeash 11y ago
  It would be trivial. Go buy a large bottle of contact lens solution, empty it, and re-fill it with water. Tell them it's contact lens solution and you're all set. Doing this with explosives may be more difficult, what with the fancy chemical detectors.
  - DanBC 11y ago
    You'd have to buy the bottle after screening, not before. You're only allowed to take 3.4 ounces through screening unless you have a medical need. I'm not sure people have a medical need for more contact lens solution, even on long flights. Maybe the TSA rules changed? I'm going by what they said on their website: http://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/cib_results.aspx?search=Liquid http://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/cib_results.aspx?search=Liquid
    - mikeash 11y ago
      Contact lens solution is considered "medically required", and "reasonable quantities" is sufficiently ill-defined that nobody really cares. I'm sure if you had a barrel of the stuff they might ask questions, but a standard 14oz bottle from the store gets at most a quick swab and you're on your way. That swab is what makes this scheme impractical for bringing dangerous liquids, of course.
    - MertsA 11y ago
      Bruce Schneier once took two 12 oz bottles of "saline solution" through security to test that. >Later, Schneier would carry two bottles labeled saline solution—24 ounces in total—through security. An officer asked him why he needed two bottles. "Two eyes," he said. He was allowed to keep the bottles. https://www.schneier.com/news/archives/2008/11/the_things_he_carrie.html https://www.schneier.com/news/archives/2008/11/the_things_he...
ck2 11y ago
And hand lotion setting off bomb sniffing for glycerin.
gesman 11y ago
True. Nothing arouses suspicion of TSA agents more than the sight of >100ml of water in one place.
rhino369 11y ago
That probably has to do with the detection tools they have. I imagine a bomb is hard to spot if it doesn't look like this: http://i.imgur.com/WyY4d4f.png http://i.imgur.com/WyY4d4f.png

I'd like to see this test repeated, but with investigators smuggling bottled water instead of weapons. I bet the TSA would have a much higher success rate with that.

eli 11y ago

I bet I could get a bottle of water through if I were attempting to evade detection.

feverishaaron 11y ago
Congratulations! You're on the no-fly list.
mc808 11y ago
Assuming they let you carry an empty bottle and distillation equipment, this should be pretty easy.
- vlucas 11y ago
  They do let you carry empty bottles through - even large ones. I always take my filtered water bottle through empty and fill it on the other side.
mikeash 11y ago
It would be trivial. Go buy a large bottle of contact lens solution, empty it, and re-fill it with water. Tell them it's contact lens solution and you're all set. Doing this with explosives may be more difficult, what with the fancy chemical detectors.
- DanBC 11y ago
  You'd have to buy the bottle after screening, not before. You're only allowed to take 3.4 ounces through screening unless you have a medical need. I'm not sure people have a medical need for more contact lens solution, even on long flights. Maybe the TSA rules changed? I'm going by what they said on their website: http://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/cib_results.aspx?search=Liquid http://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/cib_results.aspx?search=Liquid
  - mikeash 11y ago
    Contact lens solution is considered "medically required", and "reasonable quantities" is sufficiently ill-defined that nobody really cares. I'm sure if you had a barrel of the stuff they might ask questions, but a standard 14oz bottle from the store gets at most a quick swab and you're on your way. That swab is what makes this scheme impractical for bringing dangerous liquids, of course.
  - MertsA 11y ago
    Bruce Schneier once took two 12 oz bottles of "saline solution" through security to test that. >Later, Schneier would carry two bottles labeled saline solution—24 ounces in total—through security. An officer asked him why he needed two bottles. "Two eyes," he said. He was allowed to keep the bottles. https://www.schneier.com/news/archives/2008/11/the_things_he_carrie.html https://www.schneier.com/news/archives/2008/11/the_things_he...

ck2 11y ago

And hand lotion setting off bomb sniffing for glycerin.

gesman 11y ago

True. Nothing arouses suspicion of TSA agents more than the sight of >100ml of water in one place.

rhino369 11y ago

That probably has to do with the detection tools they have. I imagine a bomb is hard to spot if it doesn't look like this: http://i.imgur.com/WyY4d4f.png http://i.imgur.com/WyY4d4f.png