TSA Paid $1.4 Million For Randomizer App That Chooses Left Or Right

[ElNono]

TSA Paid $1.4 Million For Randomizer App That Chooses Left Or Right

For those of you who have traveled through U.S. airports in recent years, you may have noticed the Transport Security Administration (TSA) use a Randomizer app to randomly search travelers in the Pre-Check lane. The app randomly chooses whether travelers go left or right in the Pre-Check lane so they can't predict which lane each person is assigned to and can't figure out how to avoid the random checks. Developer Kevin Burke submitted a Freedom of Information Act request asking for details about the app. The do ents he received reveals the TSA purchased the Randomizer iPad app for $336,413.59. That's $336,413.59 for an app, which is incredibly simple to make as most programming languages of choice have a randomizing function available to use. What may be even more intriguing is that the contract for the TSA Randomizer app was won by IBM. The total amount paid for the project is actually $1.4 million, but the cost is not broken down in Burke's do ents. It's possible IBM supplied all the iPads and training in addition to the app itself.

[baseline bum]

Can't they just read a bit from /dev/urandom?

[DMX7]

They should be profiling, not randomly choosing people.

[Reck]

They should be profiling, not randomly choosing people.

This wheel of fortune approach seems pretty ty when you think what's at stake.

[TeyshaBlue]

Pretty sure Random Guy made a bundle off this.

[Bartleby]

Pretty sure Random Guy made a bundle off this.

[angrydude]

lol @ anyone who doesn't think this just wasn't a sweetheart deal for someone's cousin.

Nope, no corruption at all in the government. We should let it run everything.

[RandomGuy]

Can't they just read a bit from /dev/urandom?

https://www.random.org/

Did someone say RANDOM?

[RandomGuy]

Pretty sure Random Guy made a bundle off this.

I can neither confirm nor deny that.

[101A]

Damn. Would have liked that contract! Would have just broken out a collection of D&D dice. What percentage of people go right? 5? O.K. - pick up this 20 sided little number here, roll it...

[101A]

https://www.random.org/

Did someone say RANDOM?

So their app probably just makes a backdoor call to that site (or, more likely, to some sweat-shop in Bangladesh where there's an old dude asked to "pick a number" when a green light goes on.)

[hater]

My airport in Medellin Colombia has had that button for decades. Probably since the 1970s. I'm pretty sure it cost closer to $10 pesos and not 1.4 million the true crooks live north of the border alright

[Mitch]

They should be profiling, not randomly choosing people.

[DarrinS]

Wow

[ElNono]

lol @ anyone who doesn't think this just wasn't a sweetheart deal for someone's cousin.

Nope, no corruption at all in the government. We should let it run everything.

According to the article, it was contracted with IBM...

[Th'Pusher]

According to the article, it was contracted with IBM...

Yeah. The TSA IT director's cousin is Ginni Rometti. Scored her the big $1.4M contract.

that's a rounding error for IBM.

[RandomGuy]

So their app probably just makes a backdoor call to that site (or, more likely, to some sweat-shop in Bangladesh where there's an old dude asked to "pick a number" when a green light goes on.)

Random.org (no affiliation, honest) is a site that I used to generate statistical random samples, and will likely use again. It was part of my official audit workpapers. Had to clear it and explain it to the boss first, but once he got it, it was all good. The website rocks, IMO.