A new report from the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general, uncovered by The Daily Beast, found that the TSA's application vetting process for airline workers missed at least 73 people who should have been disqualified and identified under "terrorism-related category codes." But the 73 applications were accepted, because the TSA "is not authorized to receive all terrorism-related categories under current interagency watchlisting policy."
The report explains:
[The] TSA had less effective controls in place for ensuring that aviation workers 1) had not committed crimes that would disqualify them from having unescorted access to secure airport areas and 2) had lawful status and were authorized to work in the United States... [the] TSA lacked assurance that it properly vetted all credential applicants. [Department of Homeland Security]
The report also found that "thousands of records" the TSA used to vet applications may have used incomplete or inaccurate data. The DHS recommended that the TSA "request and review additional watchlist data" and "revoke credentials when the right to work expires."
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