TSA's Secure Flight Begins Vetting Passengers

US Transportation and Security Administration (TSA) Press Release
Contact: TSA Public Affairs (571) 227-2829
http://www.tsa.gov/press/releases/2009/0331.shtm
WASHINGTON ? The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced today the implementation of the Secure Flight program, which shifts pre-departure watch list matching responsibilities from individual aircraft operators to TSA and carries out a key recommendation of the 9/11 Commission. To date TSA has assumed the watch list matching responsibility for passengers on domestic commercial flights with four volunteer aircraft operators and will add more carriers in the coming months. "The implementation of Secure Flight is a critical step towards mitigating threats we know exist in our aviation system," said TSA Acting Administrator Gale Rossides. "Secure Flight improves security and protects passenger privacy and civil liberties by ensuring the confidentiality of government watch list matching protocols." Under Secure Flight, airlines will gather a passenger's full name, date of birth, and gender when making an airline reservation to determine if the passenger is a match to the No Fly or Selectee lists. By providing the additional data elements of gender and date of birth, Secure Flight will more effectively help prevent misidentification of passengers who have similar names to individuals on the watch list?

TSA seeks security info from highway and pipeline owners

TSA is seeking permission from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to continue making on-site visits under its Corporate Security Review program, in which two or three TSA employees spend a full day in face-to-face discussions with the owners of highway and pipeline assets to learn about any security programs they may have in place.

TSA estimates it conducts 184 such on-site visits per year, each running between three and eight hours.

?At the conclusion of these site visits, TSA completes the Corporate Review form, which asks questions concerning eleven topics: Threat assessments, vulnerability assessments, security planning, credentialing, secure areas, infrastructure protection, physical security countermeasures, cyber security, training, communications, and exercises,? said a TSA notice published in the Federal Register on March 5.

TSA is seeking comments from the public by May 4 on its request to continue this information-gathering effort. Comments can be mailed to ? and further information is available from ? Ginger LeMay, a Paperwork Reduction Act Officer at TSA, at 571-227-3616.