Why did they scan my hands at the airport?

The Transportation Security Administration randomly swabs passengers' hands at security checkpoints and airport gates to test them for traces of explosives. The TSA swabs are analyzed for nitroglycerin, nitrates, glycerin, or other chemicals. This was an expansion in 2010 from simply swabbing luggage and other items.



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The Transportation Security Administration randomly swabs passengers' hands at security checkpoints and airport gates to test them for traces of explosives. The TSA swabs are analyzed for nitroglycerin, nitrates, glycerin, or other chemicals. This was an expansion in 2010 from simply swabbing luggage and other items.

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Airport security personnel will typically ask individuals to lift their arms and show their wrists as part of the security screening process. This is done as a precautionary measure to ensure that no individuals are able to bring explosives or other dangerous items into the airport or onto an aircraft.

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Airport body scanners that use millimeter-wave technology, like those in the US and Canada, do not reveal what's inside a person's body. Unlike x-ray technology, millimeter-wave technology only checks the contour of the body; therefore, it cannot detect health issues such as tumors or inflammation.

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As shown in more detail below, this additional screening could be caused by things like: Your name matching a name of interest in a database. You raising suspicions while going through airport security. Your bag getting flagged when going through an x-ray machine.

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Technically, modern Millimeter-Wave and Backscatter airport security scanners do not detect drugs.

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A Secondary Security Screening Selection or SSSS designation on your boarding pass means that you've been picked for a secondary security screening. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) may select passengers for SSSS on flights from, to and within the U.S.

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The good news is it's not your only choice. In fact, the TSA does allow you to opt out of going through the full-body scanner machines. All you have to do is inform the TSA agent at the checkpoint that you would like to opt out, at which point you will be welcomed into the departure area with a wave and a smile.

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Scanners can sometimes be setofff due to medical devices like pacemakers, knee or hip implants, sweaty armpits, or even higher-than-average body pictures. All in all, Airport scanners cannot see tampons, but they can detect items on your body; if agents are suspicious of you, they can tap down the search.

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Why was my waist swabbed at the airport? This process, known officially as explosive trace detection, is doing just that—checking to see if your luggage has come into contact with a bomb or explosive material.

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Full-body scanners are used to detect threatening items and contraband such as weapons, explosives, and drugs under multiple layers of clothing. While there are a few different types of full-body scanners, the most common is the millimeter wave scanner.

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Belt buckles, key chains and smartphones may set off sensitive metal detectors at airport security checkpoints. Many commonly used orthopaedic implants may also set off the metal detectors.

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“The waves go through clothing and reflect off the passenger's skin (and whatever else is concealed) and bounce back an image, which is interpreted by the machine.” If the electromagnetic waves hit something that seems suspect, a Transportation Security Officer (TSO) will investigate further.

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It’s not surprising that detection dogs are used at airports due to their ability to detect the following substances within luggage and on the person: Drugs – including weed, cocaine,opium and heroin.

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When drugs are confiscated in airports, TSA officers usually refer to law enforcement to secure the confiscated substances and store them in a warehouse known as a crime laboratory. Here, the drugs will be tested, organized, and shelved for trials.

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Airport body scanners alert the TSO to threats—mainly weapons such as knives, guns and explosives. They are designed to detect “metallic and nonmetallic threat items,” according to the TSA. Those are things like explosives or knives made out of materials other than metal, like ceramics, says Malvini Redden.

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