During a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Tuesday, Rep. Eli Crane (R-AZ) spoke about the TSA's low success rate in detecting threat items at airports.
Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:
https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript
Stay Connected
Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes
More From Forbes: http://forbes.com
Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:
https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript
Stay Connected
Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes
More From Forbes: http://forbes.com
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This is a very important hearing today, talking about travel into the U.S. and some of the big events that we have coming up, like the Olympics and the World Cup.
00:13Mr. Friedman, I want to start with you. According to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, TSA has either halted data collection or has overclassified information on prohibitive items detected and ceased by TSA since 2008.
00:30By concern that TSA purposely hasn't collected data or is overclassifying data to hide embarrassing statistics that show that they routinely fail what the industry calls covert tests, these tests are an event where an undercover operative from the agency tests security by attempting to smuggle prohibited items through TSA.
00:51In 2015, DHS-OIG John Roth issued a scathing report highlighting, under the Obama administration, the OIG found that 96% of instances TSA officers used Advanced Imaging Technology, or AIT, at eight airports failed to detect hidden threat items.
01:14AIT is still in use today at U.S. airports by TSA. The agency doesn't have any data to suggest that these figures from 2015 have improved in 2025.
01:26I'm currently working with the chairman on drafting a bill that would require TSA to submit the results of all covert testing and or red-teaming testing to the Committee on Homeland Security, and I hope this bill can be bipartisan.
01:41My question, sir, and please answer briefly, with TSA's covert test failures coupled with the fact that the agency hasn't collected or submitted data on failed covert testing in recent years, how can Congress ensure that TSA is capable of handling incoming travelers
01:57from around the world for upcoming events like America's 250th birthday, the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the 2028 Summer Olympics?
02:08Thank you, Congressman. TSA's success is critical to all travelers. Travelers need confidence in their safety, in their security, or else they're simply not going to travel.
02:17So we share your concern with anything that would suggest that the process is anything but as safe and secure as it could be.
02:24TSA's accountability is to you, it's to Congress, it's to the traveling public.
02:30So we support your efforts to find ways to ensure that the technology, the staffing levels are working in the ways that they need to work.
02:37I will point out that in recent years, while staffing has increased, spending on staffing has increased, spending on technology has decreased.
02:46The technology that is so desperately needed in the airports is not slated to get into the airports until the 2040s.
02:51We need to be more urgent about providing the best technology and as quickly as we can to TSA to ensure the safety and security of the traveling public.
03:01Were you aware of that statistic that I read you, that under the Obama administration, OIG found that in 96%, the TSA officers using advanced image technology failed their tests when employees from the TSA tried to smuggle weapons, bombs, knives, guns, etc. through their security checkpoints?
03:25I was not aware of that specific statistic.
03:27What do you think about that, sir?
03:28It sounds like every day we've got work to do.
03:30We've got work to do to get better.
03:32We've got to make sure we've got the right training.
03:34We've got the right technology.
03:35We've got the right people in place.
03:37Security, safety is fundamental to people traveling.
03:41If people don't have that confidence, we will see a decline in travel.
03:45It's something that is of the utmost importance, and you certainly have our support.
03:49What about you, Mr. Gruen?
03:50Were you aware of that?
03:53I was not aware of that statistic.
03:54What do you think about the fact that they're no longer reporting those numbers?
04:02I mean, again, oversight and requiring an agency to do their job is essential to good governance.
04:10Mr. Friedman, during the 2024 Fourth Annual Future of Travel Mobility Conference, you mentioned the need to grasp the opportunity right in front of us when talking about a decade of sporting events that will make the U.S. the most sought-after destination.
04:24Modernizing our TSA and travel processing procedures are included.
04:28My question is, please answer briefly, how should TSA and Congress look at the use of AI for passenger processing to scan faces and directly cross-reference international travelers with criminal databases?
04:39It was at that same conference that I interviewed former TSA Administrator Pekoski, who demonstrated tremendous leadership during his time within TSA and partnership with the private sector.
04:51I think, based on my experience with Administrator Pekoski, TSA was going down the right road in terms of what it looks at at AI.
04:58We see enormous potential.
05:00The simple truth is that AI can detect things that the human eye will miss, and we see enormous potential in technology.
05:07I yield back.