Fancy an extra-rigorous frisking from the TSA? Just complain about airport security and they'll tag you as a terrorist



Waiting in a long line to be scanned - with the prospect of being frisked at the end - is never the most pleasant way to start a holiday.

But you'd be advised not to show your impatience as you go through U.S. airport security, because you could end up being singled out for extra scrutiny and searches.



'Arrogant complaining' is one of 70 behavioural indicators used by the TSA to identify criminals, terrorists and high risk passengers.

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Keep quiet: Passengers who 'express contempt' as they go through airport security are likely to face extra screening

If a passenger 'expresses contempt' and exhibits some of the other indicators, they could find themselves taken off for questioning.

The remarkable practice of targeting angry passengers emerged today in a list seen by CNN.

It came just days after the agency faced criticism for performing full-body searches on two children on vacation.

Yesterday it emerged little Spencer Sheahan, aged eight, was subjected to the invasive search as he left Portland airport for a family trip to Disneyland last week.



And earlier this week the parents of six-year-old Anna Drexell described how the little girl sobbed and sobbed after a full pat-down and finger search by a TSA agent when she was on her way home to Kentucky.

Too young? Six-year-old Anna Drexell, left, and eight-year-old Spencer Sheahan, right, were both subjected to invasive full-body searches at airports this month



Most of the indicators on the list are behaviours which could suggest stress, deception or fear, characteristics likely to be exhibited by potential criminals.



One of the factors reads: 'Very arrogant and expresses contempt against airport passenger procedures.'

The TSA refused to comment on the list, but told CNN no single indicator is ever used to identify passengers as 'high risk'.

They form part of a program known as SPOT, or Screening Passengers by Observation Technique, which is used at 175 airports and is soon to be expanded.

The TSA said it bases the list, used by some 3,000 uniformed behaviour detection officers, on real-world situations and intelligence, including evidence given at the 9/11 commission.

Thorough search: Passengers who become impatient or angry as they wait in line at airport security could face more stringent checks

A TSA agent told investigators part of the reason he he refused to let the alleged '20th hijacker' into America in 2001 was his arrogant behaviour.

TERRORIST SPOTTING WITH THE TSA

The SPOT programme uses a list of 70 'behavioural indicators' to assess whether passengers are 'high-risk'. According to the documents seen by CNN, none of the factors refer to race, religion or ethnicity. But one of them picks up on travellers who 'display arrogance and verbally express contempt for security procedures'.

Behaviour detection officers usually work in two-person teams, looking out for behaviours on the list, each of which has a numerical value.

They patrol the lines, often engaging travellers who they believe may be suspicious in conversation to assess the risk.

If the two agents both think the indicators they've seen add up to more than an agreed threshold then the passenger is taken to one side for extra screening. This can include more questioning and more thorough body and luggage searches. If their behaviour becomes worse, gathering more points on the checklist, agents can refer the passenger to local police officers for investigation. After that, the TSA decide whether to allow the passenger to board the flight.



He told the commission Mohammed al-Qahtani 'became visibly upset' and pointed his finger in his face in an arrogant way when the agent asked him why he didn't have a return ticket.

But National Security Analyst Peter Bergen told CNN al-Qaeda training manuals instruct would-be terrorists to avoid confrontation and blend in.

He said: 'I think the idea that they would try to draw attention to themselves by being arrogant at airport security, it fails the common sense test. And it also fails what we know about their behaviours in the past.'

And Michael German, of the American Civil Liberties Union, told the channel the list should not relate to the expression of an opinion.

He said: 'Expressing your contempt about airport procedures - that's a First Amendment-protected right.



'We all have the right to express our views, and particularly in a situation where the government is demanding the ability to search you.

"It's circular reasoning where, you know, I'm going to ask someone to surrender their rights; if they refuse, that's evidence that I need to take their rights away from them. And it's simply inappropriate.'



The SPOT program is due to be expanded under President Obama's 2012 budget proposal, with an extra 175 behaviour detection officers.

Originally designed to target terrorists, it now aims to spot criminals, too.

The TSA says SPOT is much more accurate than using random checks, but critics argue the 'false positive' rate is still very high. For every person correctly identified as a a high-risk passenger, a further 86 were misidentified.







