New TSA Pre-check system

Christian Science Monitor (June 25) -- "If you screen everybody the same, you're actually making the system less secure, even though it doesn't look that way," says Sheldon Jacobson, a computer scientist and professor at Illinois, who created some of the research upon which the TSA PreCheck program is based. Security screeners search among passengers for the small percentage who want to cause harm, not unlike searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack. A PreCheck system essentially splits the haystack, Dr. Jacobson says, telling TSA screeners which half has been searched already. Since screeners have limited time with travelers, they can work more effectively by checking fewer straws.

Related article: Defense One (June 30) -- Officials need to to fundamentally rethink airport security, says Sheldon Jacobson, a mathematics professor at the University of Illinois focusing on airport security. “There’s going to be no compromise at checkpoints; we do not need more there. But we need to rethink the entire system of security,” he said. “The terrorist threats have moved away from the planes themselves and have moved into softer targets, which are very, very expensive to protect. What [security services] are now doing is creating more layers of the softer targets.” Adding security before travelers reach the checkpoint line “creates deterrence as well as some opportunity to spot potential threats before they happen.” Also: Fiscal Times (July 1).