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posted by martyb on Monday April 03 2017, @09:43AM   Printer-friendly
from the Boom-Box dept.

Will law enforcement gain the power to search laptops at any time by declaring them potential bombs?

US intelligence and law enforcement agencies believe that ISIS and other terrorist organizations have developed innovative ways to plant explosives in electronic devices that FBI testing shows can evade some commonly used airport security screening methods, CNN has learned. Heightening the concern is US intelligence suggesting that terrorists have obtained sophisticated airport security equipment to test how to effectively conceal explosives in laptops and other electronic devices.

The intelligence, gathered in the last several months, played a significant role in the Trump administration's decision to prohibit travelers flying out of 10 airports in eight countries in the Middle East and Africa from carrying laptops and other large electronic devices aboard planes. The findings may raise questions about whether the ban is broad enough. CNN has learned that, through a series of tests conducted late last year, the FBI determined the laptop bombs would be far more difficult for airport screeners to detect than previous versions terrorist groups have produced. The FBI testing focused on specific models of screening machines that are approved by the Transportation Security Administration and are used in the US and around the world.

Also at USA Today and The Washington Examiner.


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  • (Score: 2) by zocalo on Monday April 03 2017, @03:52PM (2 children)

    by zocalo (302) on Monday April 03 2017, @03:52PM (#488239)
    The device goes in the hold, batteries and all, apparently. Hence the problem with the conflict with the LiIon battery rule. I do hope everyone who was using their device prior to checking-in remembers to turn it off properly, rather than putting it into standby or even just turning the display off, before they carefully wrap it up in whatever nice soft and insulating clothes they have to try and keep it safe in their checked luggage in the hold... where no one will see the smoke if it should start to overheat.
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    UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 03 2017, @07:05PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 03 2017, @07:05PM (#488295)

    No, there are smoke detectors.

    Personally, I'd be far more concerned with sticky-fingered screeners and baggage handlers.

    • (Score: 2) by zocalo on Monday April 03 2017, @10:15PM

      by zocalo (302) on Monday April 03 2017, @10:15PM (#488412)
      Yes, of course there are, but in the cabin it's much less likely that a LiIon battery is going to get so hot it's going to be a problem, and even if it does there's a chance the passengers and flight attendants may be able to deal with it before it gets out of hand. Not so much in the hold, where it's quite possible that it's going to be much closer to the verge of actual ignition or even explosion before the smoke detectors trip, at which point a diversion and emergency landing would be quite likely the best outcome you could hope for.
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      UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!