Security upgrades yet to reach SFO

By Claudio Ribeiro
The Guardsman

On Christmas day 2009, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a 23-year-old Nigerian man claiming ties to al-Qaida, attempted to set off an incendiary device he smuggled aboard a Detroit-bound flight from Amsterdam.

Since the failed attack, some travelers at San Francisco International Airport have expressed a loss of confidence in the Transportation Security Administration’s security policies.

“It doesn’t seem like they checked everybody’s bags,” said Ron Maniuf, a recent passenger. “The searches weren’t handled with extreme professionalism.”

According to Linda Rhoades, a customer service worker for SFO, there is a reason why travelers have not seen much change in security procedure since Abdulmutallab’s attempted act of terror.

“Most new measures are behind the scenes and do not directly affect the traveling public,” Rhoades said.

One visible change made to security were signs posted at security checkpoints warning travelers of the risk of terrorism and instructing them to report suspicious activity to TSA officers.

“These signs aren’t necessary,” traveler Dave Marshall said. “It’s only going to help expand the terrorism paranoia.”

When asked about new security measures at SFO since the failed bombing plot, Edgar, a TSA security supervisor who declined to provide his last name, would only say that he had not seen any.

“I’m not allowed to disclose such information,” Edgar said. “No new procedures have been seen at SFO, but I was assured there have been improvements made.”

In response to public concerns over security, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom met with SFO Director John Martin for a Jan. 6 briefing, which resulted in several new security initiatives.

SFO is using a $5 million federal grant to replace more than a thousand security cameras with high-definition models equipped with facial recognition technology and spending $3 million to make new security badges with computer chips to prevent unauthorized entry to secure areas.

Newsom is also seeking federal grant money for 150 controversial whole-body scanners, which some civil rights activists consider equally invasive as a strip search. The mayor hopes to incorporate at least one machine at every seven security checkpoints. SFO already has one at its international terminal.