Traveler Tried To Board Plane Using False ID At Tampa Airport: TSA

TAMPA, FL — A traveler trying to use false identification and a boarding pass of another person was arrested Aug. 15 at Tampa International Airport, according to a Transportation Security Administration news release.

The person was caught by a Tampa TSA officer, Justin Causby, using facial recognition software.
Causby was working his shift on Airside A when the person inserted a driver’s license into the credential authentication technology or CAT-2 machine, while a photo was taken to be matched to the ID presented.

The machine indicated a mismatch error and when Causby inspected the license and boarding pass, he quickly determined that the individual was using documents belonging to someone else, the TSA said.

Causby notified a supervisor, who called in Tampa International Airport Police Department to investigate further. The person was arrested following their investigation.

CAT-2 units are equipped with cameras on tablets and are used to match the face of the person standing at the checkpoint with the face that appears on the traveler’s ID, such as the person’s driver’s license or passport. The technology enhances detection capabilities for identifying fraudulent documents at the security checkpoint.

The system also confirms the passenger’s flight status by verifying that the individual is ticketed to fly out of an airport on that same day.