Feds Lied to US. Feds Keep Naked Images of US Body Scans
Written by Teresa Knudsen. First published on Suite 101 August 04, 2010.
Republished January 11, 2012 on Sweet Suite Writings

Feds Lied to US. Feds Keep Naked Images of US Body Scans

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a lawsuit to stop the U.S. government from taking naked body scans. EPIC's position is that the body scans are unconstitutional, violate privacy, are unsafe due to the levels of radiation, and unreliable in preventing a terrorist attack.

As reported by Declan McCullagh in the Privacy Inc. section of CNET, the U.S. Marshals Service replied that it has over 30,000 naked images of people who were forced into a naked body scanner at an Orlando, Florida, courthouse.

The U.S. Marshals admission contradicts the government agency, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The TSA repeatedly gave statements that the body scanner machines were private. It turns out that the body scanner machines can and do store naked images, and the U.S. government keeps the naked images of both U.S. citizens and citizens of other countries without probable cause, violating the Fourth Amendment of the Bill of Rights and the U. S. Constitution.

TSA May 9, 2010 Blog Gave False Information

Many U.S. citizens were unaware of the May 9, 2008 TSA blog announcement titled "You Asked for It...You Got It." The TSA announces that the "much requested, much anticipated, full body images...both front and back, male and female just like so many of you asked for."

In the May 9, 2008 TSA blog, the TSA stated, "TSA will not keep, store or transmit images."The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a lawsuit in U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia, as well as a Freedom of Information Act (FIOA) request regarding "All unfiltered or unobscured images captured using Whole Body Imaging Technology."

U.S. Marshals Service States that it Keeps Naked Body Scans

In an August 2, 2010 letter, the U.S. Marshal Service admitted that it has kept over 30,000 images of U.S. citizens and citizens of other countries who went to the Orlando, Florida, federal courthouse.
The Marshals Service associate general counsel William Bordley admitted in a letter, "approximately 35,314 images...have been stored on the Brijot Gen2 machines."

The U. S. Marshals Service sent EPIC more than 100 naked body scan images of people entering the courthouse.

According to EPIC, the letter "proves that body scanning devices store and record images of individuals stripped naked." EPIC has asked the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for all of the stored images, but the DHS has refused.

In a January 1, 2010, editorial published by the Washington Post, the former Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff, pushes the naked body scanners. He calls people who do not want to be photographed naked "privacy idealogues."

After working for the government agency from 2005 to 2009, Chertoff now is co-founder of The Chertoff Group, and represents at least one manufacturer of naked body scanners.

Sources
Bordley, William. Letter to John Verdi, Electronic Privacy Information Center. Aug. 2, 2010.
Chertoff, Michael. "Former Homeland Security Chief Argues for Whole-Body Imaging." Washington Post. January 1, 2010.
EPIC. "Whole Body Imaging Technology and Body Scanners. (Backscatter X-Ray and Millimeter Wave Screenings."
McCullagh, Declan. "Feds Admit Storing Checkpoint Body Scan Images." Privacy Inc. Aug. 4, 2010
Transportation Security Administration. "You Asked For It...You Got It." May 9, 2008.
Walters, Chris. "Courthouse in Florida has 35,000 Body Scans of Citizens." The Consumerist. Aug. 4, 2010.