Anyone on the same itenerary as a person with TSA Precheck also gets Precheck

PreCheck can be given two separate ways - one is via the the public program (what you do when you enroll) the other is via the airline basically saying &quot;yeah, this person is frequent enough that we don&#x27;t think they are a problem&quot; or they are traveling with someone who doesn&#x27;t trip any of our flags.<p>There is a cost that the airline takes (I&#x27;ve never heard exactly what it is) for each person they refer to the TSA as pre-cleared, which I assume means there is a separate lookup against TSA lists, etc. It&#x27;s at the discretion of the carrier. United does it all the time, Delta somewhat, and Southwest almost never in my experience.<p>So: a) Airlines can suggest pre-clearing you. b) There is some sort of match that the TSA also does. c) But just spend the money and get the full list.<p>Almost all security is doctrine and kabuki theater. 9&#x2F;11&#x27;s big problem wasn&#x27;t security screening, it was that the doctrine of hijackings at that point was that the threat was hostages and negotiation, and therefore the best thing to do was to comply with hijacker demands.

TSA screenings don&#x27;t protect anyone from anything[0]; they are pure security theater and a great way to control the flow of people around the USA. TSA PreCheck is simply a revenue stream for the TSA.<p>[0] <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;abcnews.go.com&#x2F;US&#x2F;tsa-fails-tests-latest-undercover-operation-us-airports&#x2F;story?id=51022188" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;abcnews.go.com&#x2F;US&#x2F;tsa-fails-tests-latest-undercover-...</a>

TSA precheck is not about security- it&#x27;s about allowing the privileged, wealthy, etc to not have to wait in line with everyone else. It&#x27;s one of many &quot;pay for access&quot; systems growing around us today.<p>$20 per ride toll lanes on the highways. &quot;Express pass&quot; at the amusement park. Global Entry at US Customs. They&#x27;re all just more ways of saying that the rich don&#x27;t need to wait around with the plebians.

Of course the number of terrorists trying to do something on domestic flights is vanishingly small.<p>there were 631 million people flying in 2010, for example (I did a quick google, I&#x27;m sure there are more up to date numbers somewhere). There were 6 terrorist incidents in the US, per wikipedia. Of those 1 involved a plane, which wasn&#x27;t a passenger jet.<p>Now, maybe all the security theater is keeping terrorists from trying to do something, but given the fact that terrorists are blowing up markets and other buildings in iraq and nothing would really prevent that, I&#x27;d say the number of terrorists in the US is just incredibly small.<p>But yeah, it&#x27;s amazing that the US government can treat everyone as a suspicious individual, get them to pay to not be as big of a suspect, given how little terrorism there actually is.<p>We spend billons of dollars on terrorism that could probably save a lot more lives applied to things like safer cars or reducing medical mistakes.

I have a friend who is ineligible for PreCheck due to prior criminal history, and he has had the same thing happen to him. His wife got PreCheck and suddenly every time he flew with her he got it also.<p>Having known him and his family for years, he&#x27;s not a security risk at all but it still seems like that probably shouldn&#x27;t happen. Especially if the individual is already disqualified for PreCheck.

TSA precheck is one of those things I should use my credit card to be reimbursed on. I fly sporadically, mostly within the continental US, and once had a very uncomfortable search by a TSA agent.<p>A guy put on gloves, fondled my balls, my butt cheeks, hell he put his hands inside my pants and went to town (luckily no finger in my butt, I don&#x27;t think I would have handled that well). I stayed pissed at this molestation for weeks afterwards, and I would be surprised if the government hasn&#x27;t exempted itself from lawsuits and lawmakers from this shitstain process.<p>I&#x27;m a naturalized citizen, I vote for anyone who even hints at reigning in the TSA, DHS, ICE, etc. Please do the same.

All Pre tells me is that everyone else is going through more &quot;security&quot; than even the TSA deems necessary for absolutely no reason. I refuse to enroll in it mainly because of that.

The problem with pre-check and things like it is that it exempts those who would otherwise complain the loudest and have the political clout to get the system changed ie: politicians, frequent business travelers etc...

Doesn’t work all the time. I have it, but my wife doesn’t; we were both denied precheck on one pair of flights. Maybe this is how they incentivize us to get it for her too.<p>EDIT: typo

Security theater, my friends...

hasn&#x27;t worked for me on the last several trips on Southwest. (I&#x27;m PreCheck, my wife isn&#x27;t; same itinerary.)

If anyone has an American Express platinum credit card, Amex will reimburse you for Global Entry or TSA Precheck. You get Precheck automatically with Global Entry so I&#x27;d recommend opting for Global Entry. It also lasts for a few years. The Amex Plat has a pretty hefty annual fee but comes with a bunch of perks like an annual $200 airline credit, access to airport lounges, and more. Totally worth opening for the points and perks and then downgrading imo.

Is there a comprehensive list of the programs (Tsa pre, global entry, nexus, whatever) with the list of costs, perks, and eligibility?<p>Even a part of this information?

Is this a recent change? Last summer my teenage son was given Precheck randomly. My wife and I did not and had to go through the regular line. We gave him all of our electronics and all three of us sailed through security even though two of us had to go through the standard line.

Could somebody please kill this story before the wrong bureaucrat realizes this is happening and I lose my precheck status when I fly with my wife? Snitches get stitches.

a back door into security theater!

I heard Indian temples have fast lanes to see gods. This is a similar system to create a fastlane. If you pay $99, you don’t have to take your shoes off.

It makes sense if you think the person who has undergone the background check vouches for the others on their itinerary.

This really should work the other way around.

fwiw I travel frequently and have observed the exact opposite : one or more pax on the same locator as me have &quot;Pre&quot; status on their boarding pass. TSA staff make me go separate from them, through the regular line.

true. happened to me few days ago on an int&#x27;l flight.