US TSA officials have streamlined the process for pat-downs at airport security

United States TSA officials have created a new, more invasive process for physical pat-downs in airport security.

The new process will be more streamlined, in that officials have for a long time had the options of using five different types of physical pat-down in the screening lines.

Those selected to have a pat-down will go through a 'comprehensive physical screening,' which will include more rigorous searches that, according to a notice at Denver International Airport, 'will be more thorough and may involve an officer making more intimate contact than before'.

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United States TSA officials have streamlined the process for physical pat-downs in the airport screening process

Speaking to Bloomberg, TSA spokesman Bruce Anderson said: 'I would say people who in the past would have gotten a pat-down that wasn't involved will notice that the new pat-down is more involved'.

This will represent a shift from the previous risk-based assessment on which pat-down procedure an officer should apply.

The TSA screens about 2million people daily in the United States, but doesn't track how many passengers receive pat-downs after passing through an imaging scanner.

Many passengers may find the new pat-down more intrusive, but it is not expected to increase overall security delays.

This will represent a shift from the previous risk-based assessment on which pat-down procedure an officer should apply

Anderson did tell Bloomberg that it will cause delays for the individual receiving the pat-down.

The change is primarily due to an audit by the Department of Homeland Security that drew headlines because airports were failing to detect handguns and other weapons.

The study showed that TSA failed 95 per cent of airport security tests by allowing undercover agents to successfully and repeatedly bring mock explosives and banned weapons through security checkpoints.

Many passengers may find the new pat-down more intrusive, but it is not expected to increase overall security delays

The new policy will also apply to airline pilots and flight attendants, who had previously received less scrutiny during screening.

While the TSA occasionally conducts random searches of these employees, the number of searches isn't changing and will remain a very small percentage. However, airport employees may face more checks, reported Bloomberg.

The intensity and frequency of searches will also vary by airport, and will depend on the screening program.

Physical screening has for a long time been a part of travelers strongest dislikes regarding airport security protocol.

In the past, many people have come out to criticize the TSA after what they believed were inappropriately humiliating pat-downs.

CNN political commentator, Angela Rye, posted a graphically detailed article online describing her humiliating during a pat-down at the Detroit Airport.

Additionally, in 2016, a woman battling with breast cancer described a humiliating experience being pulled to the side and 'aggressively' patted down by agents.