In its endless quest to endanger passengers, the TSA has since at least 2003 threatened that if you secure your luggage with locks other than those to which it has master keys, it will cut said locks with no liability for damage. Some folks invested in the approved locks; others simply left their bags open. No wonder theft at airports is epidemic. Thank you, TSA!
Last year, hackers duplicated those master keys from accounts—and pictures—of them in the media. Which means exactly what you’d assume: anyone who can copy a photo can manufacture the keys and help himself to the contents of your bags. (Not that this makes much difference. First, I doubt the TSA’s thieves leave much of value for free-lance pilferers. Second, the TSA endorses locks so flimsy that disgusted flyers often quit bothering and simply take their chances.)
The TSA responded to this breach with the insouciance typical of its reaction whenever its policies harm the very people it pretends to protect: “The reported ability to create keys for TSA-approved suitcase locks from a digital image does not create a threat to aviation security … These consumer products are ‘peace of mind’ devices, not part of TSA’s aviation security regime…”
Whoa! “Peace of mind” rather than actual protection. That’s pretty much the TSA in a nutshell.
The hackers are back again this year with the same stunt. They’re concerned that most folks missed their point in 2015, which was the analogy of the TSA’s master keys to the “backdoor encryption of the sort espoused by various government agencies…” So they’re making things more explicit. As one of them with the nom de guerre of “Johnny Xmas” put it, “’Let’s say we trust the U.S. government.’” Oh, boy, what a premise! “’Let’s say that we call [sic] accept that the U.S. government has all our best interests in mind and only serves to protect us,’ Johnny Xmas said with more than a hint of skepticism.” Yeah, like a whole truckload. “‘What happens when the bad guys get those keys?”
Oh, indeed.
Mr. Xmas continued, “’We were doing this as an act of civil disobedience …To give the general public a better physical understanding of what it means when government bodies demand to have unrestricted access to everything via the use of master keys. … If you insist on creating a set of locks that have a master key that I have no control over, how can I ensure that my safety is still intact when your security fails[?]’” And fail it will, as anyone who know
Help these hackers awaken your friends, especially those of the “I-have-nothing-to-hide,-why-should-I-fear-government’s-surveillance” variety, by sharing Mr. Xmas’ insights with them.
12:02 pm on July 27, 2016
