TSA gets new acting director after security lapses
(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is receiving a new interim director after a damning internal investigation in which undercover agents were able to smuggle weapons past security 95 percent of the time.
The agency's Instagram page is rife with examples of intercepted weapons including batarangs, a Klingon Bat'leth, a stun gun disguised as a pack of cigarettes, bear mace, nunchucks, ninja stars and an inert anti-tank projectile.
But an investigation into the TSA found major flaws in the agency's security protocols at dozens of America's busiest airports.
The Department of Homeland Security, which TSA falls under, sent undercover "red teams" who posed as passengers attempting to circumvent security procedures.
They were successful in getting mock explosives and banned weapons through security screening in 67 out of 70 attempts, according to test results that ABC News first made public.
Red teams are generally comprised of individuals with internal knowledge of security procedures and weaknesses, making them uniquely capable to exploit internal procedures.
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said in a statement that he has called on "TSA leadership to immediately revise its standard operating procedures for screening to address the specific vulnerabilities identified by the" report.
Acting TSA administrator Melvin Carraway has been reassigned following news of the report, and acting deputy director Mark Hatfield has been appointed to the administration's top spot on an interim basis.
President Barack Obama tapped Coast Guard Vice Admiral Pete Neffenger to be the next TSA chief in April, but the Senate has yet to confirm the nominee.
Johnson urged the Senate to confirm Neffenger "as quickly as possible".
The agency's Instagram page is rife with examples of intercepted weapons including batarangs, a Klingon Bat'leth, a stun gun disguised as a pack of cigarettes, bear mace, nunchucks, ninja stars and an inert anti-tank projectile.
But an investigation into the TSA found major flaws in the agency's security protocols at dozens of America's busiest airports.
The Department of Homeland Security, which TSA falls under, sent undercover "red teams" who posed as passengers attempting to circumvent security procedures.
They were successful in getting mock explosives and banned weapons through security screening in 67 out of 70 attempts, according to test results that ABC News first made public.
Red teams are generally comprised of individuals with internal knowledge of security procedures and weaknesses, making them uniquely capable to exploit internal procedures.
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said in a statement that he has called on "TSA leadership to immediately revise its standard operating procedures for screening to address the specific vulnerabilities identified by the" report.
Acting TSA administrator Melvin Carraway has been reassigned following news of the report, and acting deputy director Mark Hatfield has been appointed to the administration's top spot on an interim basis.
President Barack Obama tapped Coast Guard Vice Admiral Pete Neffenger to be the next TSA chief in April, but the Senate has yet to confirm the nominee.
Johnson urged the Senate to confirm Neffenger "as quickly as possible".
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