Airport security measures

swatiraohnlu

Swati Rao
At the time where X-ray controls and body scanners are becoming more and more common at the airports, a question of violating - unjustifiably infringing on - one's privacy (which can be in this case defined as the ability to reveal pesonal information selectively). Do modern airport security controls violate personal privacy?
 
Both the images from scanners and surveyed information are kept just for the purpose of deciding whether or not that person presents a threat. Additionally, this data is not stored for longer periods of time and is not attached to one's name, therefore it is not violating any one's privacy as it it anonymous.
In the airports, there is a kind of a mutual contract between the society and the customer - the agreement to disclose personal information selectively and voluntarily. Everybody knows about the controls beforehand and everybody has always the opportunity not to fly.
 
Governments have a duty to their citizens to protect their rights to security of person and freedom from fear. Laws designed to enhance security are not only passed by democratically elected governments, but also enjoy popular support as measured by opinion polls and in the outcomes of subsequent elections. Once the threat of terror has been dealt with, liberty can be given greater emphasis and security measures relaxed once again.
 
It's not just about getting those horrific, dangerous machines into every airport, it's also about dissuading you from travelling. The gov't doesn't want to ban flying outright because that would be too much like what the Soviet Union and Maoist China used to do. And they don't want anyone realizing that that's exactly what this country has become.
 
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