Author Archives: Jeff Price
EgyptAir Flight MS181: Don’t take our eye off the ball, because there is a threat to worry about here.
By Jeff Price, Professor MSU Denver and lead author, Practical Aviation Security: Predicting and Preventing Future Threats There have been a lot of stories in the media about this EgyptAir hijacking that “calls into question” airline and airport security in Egypt. But let’s not take our eye off the ball – let’s continue to stay… Continue Reading
How can I protect myself from suicide bombers at airports, like in Brussels?
The suspected attacks on the airport in Brussels raises questions about the safety of Americans traveling both in the US and abroad. What can passengers do to protect themselves from the same tragedy, and what should US airports and the TSA be doing in response? First, understand that there is no 100% safe solution. Terrorism… Continue Reading
Who Should You Believe?
“The worst vice is advice,” Al Pacino in the movie, The Devil’s Advocate. For years, there was a rumor circulating around the United Airlines hiring process that pilot applicants, (if they were from out of town and staying in the designated hotel) could never be seen out of their hotel room unless they were in… Continue Reading
Why Airport Screening Lines are Backing Up
If you’ve been on a commercial flight in the past six months you probably noticed that the checkpoint lines are slowing down and as a result, getting longer. Also, there does not seem to be relief in sight as TSA reaffirms its commitment to spending more time looking at you and your luggage and less… Continue Reading
It’s time to upgrade the airport access control and badging system – what questions should I ask?
By Jeffrey C. Price and Lori Beckman Airport security managers throughout the United States are responsible for the computerized physical access control systems (PACS), which allow thousands of workers into secure areas of the airport on a daily basis. Many of these systems were upgraded shortly after 9/11, but now time is coming for the… Continue Reading
Will the FAA’s upgrade of the air traffic control system be the Next Generation of cybersecurity threats?
It’s called NextGen, and if not properly protected, the system designed to make aviation safer, may present the most dangerous risk to the national airspace system and even the nation itself, particularly if attacked by an insider threat. NextGen is the ongoing transformation of the Federal Aviation Administration’s complex air traffic control, radar, navigation and… Continue Reading
How much can you trust, your Trusted Agent?
In 2011, a former British Airways worker was convicted on four counts of preparing acts of terrorism. Inspired by the preaching and teaching of al Qaeda’s late propaganda minister, Anwar Al-Awlaki, Rajib Karim, a software engineer, told Awlaki he had access to British Airways servers and could erase all data, causing massive flight disruptions and… Continue Reading
15th Annual AAAE/DHS/TSA Aviation Security Summit, Part III
The big issue this year continues to be the insider threat / employee security. Legislative staffers visited with industry leadership at the Summit about the various laws attempting to make their way through the House or the Senate, directed at improving airport security. A significant piece of legislation to keep an eye on is H.R.3102… Continue Reading
15th Annual AAAE/DHS/TSA Aviation Security Summit, Part II
Although the airport security industry missed out on meeting TSA Administrator Neffenger, the annual security summit did provide some updates on other programs: ● Status of Rapback: Rapback is a criminal vetting process that automatically resubmits aviation worker fingerprints to determine if an individual who already has an airport identification badge, has subsequently been arrested… Continue Reading