Following a review of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) documentation on the effectiveness of six passenger aviation security countermeasures, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommended that the agency explore methods to evaluate the effectiveness and cost of those countermeasures.
GAO identified the U.S. Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) as a priority for review and also cited a lack of effectiveness data for its Behavior Detection and Analysis (BDA) program. GAO found that TSA does have data on passenger prescreening, checkpoint and checked baggage screening and explosives detection canines.
GAO recommended that TSA implement processes to measure the deterrent effect of its passenger aviation security countermeasures and systematically assess potential cost and effectiveness trade-offs across its aviation security countermeasures. DHS concurred with these recommendations.
In completing the study, GAO reviewed effectiveness documentation for fiscal year 2015, the most recent for which data was available. The organization also reviewed TSA documents and interviewed TSA officials. It selected the six programs it reviewed because they all include direct interaction with passengers, their belongings, or their personal information and are mostly operated and funded by TSA.