US to Start Profiling as Part of Air Security Checks

Here is short (less than 150 word) excerpt from a much longer article on the BBC website page.

The US has announced that it will begin profiling US-bound passengers to determine who should get extra screening. The measures will replace mandatory enhanced screening of all travellers from 14 nations, brought in after the failed attack on a flight in December. Travellers will be picked out according to how closely they match intelligence on potential terrorist threats.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said the new measures would use "real-time, threat-based intelligence along with multiple, random layers of security, both seen and unseen, to more effectively mitigate evolving terrorist threats".

The US began notifying air carriers on Thursday and the new protocols are being implemented immediately, a senior administration official told the BBC. The New York Times says the new strategy will more precisely target those individuals about whom security officials have concerns. "This is not a system that can be called profiling in the traditional sense. It is intelligence-based," the newspaper quoted an official as saying. Passengers were told to expect increased use of explosives trace detection, advanced imaging technology, sniffer dogs and pat downs.The screening will take into account characteristics like nationality, age, recently visited countries and partial names, the newspaper said.

Full article -

BBC News - US to start profiling as part of air security checks