Silk Road forums
Discussion => Security => Topic started by: ValiantExplorer on November 27, 2012, 07:47 pm
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I want to move a small quantity of LSD from Germany to Italy. I'm talking about 2 blotters, so, nothing serious.
I plan to put the blotters in my backpack, probably in a notebook or something. It's not a big deal because I never get searched or stuff.
However, my worry is that somehow that X-Ray machine may detect that I have LSD in my notebook. I know that when the backpack moves under the X-Ray, they see the SHAPES of all the objects in grayscale coloring.
THE QUESTION IS: will the X-Ray of an LSD blotter look much differently than the X-Ray of a, say, postal stamp? Could they have some sort of way to detect that I'm carrying something suspicious and search me?
Thank you in advance!
[Please feel free to reply even if the answer was already given - the more info, the merrier!]
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Not good news I'm afraid !
For the near future that is, for now you should be fine...
Here is the link to the article I have pasted in below:
http://gizmodo.com/5923980/the-secret-government-laser-that-instantly-knows-everything-about-you
Hidden Government Scanners Will Instantly Know Everything About You From 164 Feet Away
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Within the next year or two, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will instantly know everything about your body, clothes, and luggage with a new laser-based molecular scanner fired from 164 feet (50 meters) away. From traces of drugs or gun powder on your clothes to what you had for breakfast to the adrenaline level in your body—agents will be able to get any information they want without even touching you.
And without you knowing it.
The technology is so incredibly effective that, in November 2011, its inventors were subcontracted by In-Q-Tel to work with the US Department of Homeland Security. In-Q-Tel is a company founded "in February 1999 by a group of private citizens at the request of the Director of the CIA and with the support of the U.S. Congress." According to In-Q-Tel, they are the bridge between the Agency and new technology companies.
Their plan is to install this molecular-level scanning in airports and border crossings all across the United States. The official, stated goal of this arrangement is to be able to quickly identify explosives, dangerous chemicals, or bioweapons at a distance.
The machine is ten million times faster—and one million times more sensitive—than any currently available system. That means that it can be used systematically on everyone passing through airport security, not just suspect or randomly sampled people.
Analyzing everything in real time
But the machine can sniff out a lot more than just explosives, chemicals and bioweapons. The company that invented it, Genia Photonics, says that its laser scanner technology is able to "penetrate clothing and many other organic materials and offers spectroscopic information, especially for materials that impact safety such as explosives and pharmacological substances." [PDF]
Formed in Montreal in 2009 by PhDs with specialties in lasers and fiber optics, Genia Photonics has 30 patents on this technology, claiming incredible biomedical and industrial applications—from identifying individual cancer cells in a real-time scan of a patient, to detecting trace amounts of harmful chemicals in sensitive manufacturing processes.
Hidden Government Scanners Will Instantly Know Everything About You From 164 Feet AwayAbove: The Genia Photonics' Picosecond Programmable Laser scanner is capable of detecting every tiny trace of any substance on your body, from specks of gunpowder to your adrenaline levels to a sugar-sized grain of cannabis to what you had for breakfast.
Meanwhile, In-Q-Tel states that "an important benefit of Genia Photonics' implementation as compared to existing solutions is that the entire synchronized laser system is comprised in a single, robust and alignment-free unit that may be easily transported for use in many environments… This compact and robust laser has the ability to rapidly sweep wavelengths in any pattern and sequence." [PDF]
So not only can they scan everyone. They would be able to do it everywhere: the subway, a traffic light, sports events... everywhere.
How does it work?
The machine is a mobile, rack-mountable system. It fires a laser to provide molecular-level feedback at distances of up to 50 meters in just picoseconds. For all intents and purposes, that means instantly.
The small, inconspicuous machine is attached to a computer running a program that will show the information in real time, from trace amounts of cocaine on your dollar bills to gunpowder residue on your shoes. Forget trying to sneak a bottle of water past security—they will be able to tell what you had for breakfast in an instant while you're walking down the hallway.
The technology is not new, it's just millions times faster and more convenient than ever before. Back in 2008, a team at George Washington University developed a similar laser spectrometer using a different process. It could sense drug metabolites in urine in less than a second, trace amounts of explosive residue on a dollar bill, and even certain chemical changes happening in a plant leaf.
And the Russians also have a similar technology: announced last April, their "laser sensor can pick up on a single molecule in a million from up to 50 meters away."
So if Genia Photonics' claims pan out, this will be an incredible leap forward in terms of speed, portability, and convenience. One with staggering implications.
Observation without limits
There has so far been no discussion about the personal rights and privacy issues involved. Which "molecular tags" will they be scanning for? Who determines them? What are the threshold levels of this scanning? If you unknowingly stepped on the butt of someone's joint and are carrying a sugar-sized grain of cannabis like that unfortunate traveler currently in jail in Dubai, will you be arrested?
And, since it's extremely portable, will this technology extend beyone the airport or border crossings and into police cars, with officers looking for people on the street with increased levels of adrenaline in their system to detain in order to prevent potential violent outbursts? And will your car be scanned at stoplights for any trace amounts of suspicious substances? Would all this information be recorded anywhere?
Hidden Government Scanners Will Instantly Know Everything About You From 164 Feet AwayAbove: A page from a Genia Photonics paper describing its ability to even penetrate through clothing.
There are a lot of questions with no answer yet, but it's obvious that the potential level of personal invasion of this technology goes far beyond that of body scans, wiretaps, and GPS tracking.
The end of privacy coming soon
According to the undersecretary for science and technology of the Department of Homeland Security, this scanning technology will be ready within one to two years, which means you might start seeing them in airports as soon as 2013.
In other words, these portable, incredibly precise molecular-level scanning devices will be cascading lasers across your body as you walk from the bathroom to the soda machine at the airport and instantly reporting and storing a detailed breakdown of your person, in search of certain "molecular tags".
Going well beyond eavesdropping, it seems quite possible that U.S. government plans on recording molecular data on travelers without their consent, or even knowledge that it's possible—a scary thought. While the medical uses could revolutionize the way doctors diagnose illness, and any technology that could replace an aggressive pat-down is tempting, there's a potential dark side to this implementation, and we need to shine some light on it before it's implemented.
The author of this story is currently completing his PhD in renewable energy solutions, focusing on converting waste to energy in the urban environment. Even while most of this information is publicly available, he wanted to remain anonymous.
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Ugh. That sounds really ugly. I doubt privacy groups will let that go without a fight. But since over in the States they implemented the body scanners... nothing surprises me any more.
Luckily I live in Europe :).
Anyway, I'd be grateful for more replies :). I'm really curious what other people think, am I risking jail-time like an idiot?
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Chewing gum is the answer.
Make sure you put your blotters in 2/3 layers of plastic bag so you don't get them wet/deteriorated while you store them in your mouth for the time being.
In the worst case scenario you swallow the gum and you will have one hell of a flight.
Try to look normal, I always go high as fuck whenever I'm flying out of the country, it's a personal thing.
Last time I smoked so much weed that I was waiting in a queue for 50 mins without having any idea that I'm in the wrong queue lol :)
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Hah, that's a an entertaining way of doing it, but I am not yet risking being high while flying. I have no issue with flying but I would rather do it at home. That's actually why I'm buying it anyway. Also, would the blotters be intact in a layer of bubblegum which I might have to start chewing? Will not crumpling the blotter unlatch some of the substance from it?
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Hey :). Sorry to bump this but more feedback on this matter would be greatly appreciated :).
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In my younger, more fearless (reckless) days, I took several hits of lsd through an airport. I had them in a folded piece of paper that I wedged as far as I could get it into the center of a book that I had on my carry on bag. it worked for me, but this was a few years ago. I think you probably would be fine but I don't think the reward is worth the potential (however unlikely) consequences - which would likely be severe.
If you do go through with it, do not keep them in tinfoil.
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I know this doesn't answer your question, but I've tripped while flying, and I would recommend it if you're reasonably comfortable with hallucinogens.
Being on a plane while tripping was mindblowing. I couldn't believe we were actually flying! It made the whole experience a lot less boring.
Obviously, I wouldn't do this if you're planning on taking more drugs with you, since you'll be in big trouble if you get busted. I ate my shrooms as I waited in my departing airport!
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I definitely am tempted to try some acid on an airplane. But yes, I'll do that some other time, when I'm not actually interested in transporting it :D.
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I did this a while back, I brought maybe 10 hits with me in a notebook. Not a problem. I could probably have had 10 sheets and still not ran into any issues.
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*takes a relieved breath*
I won't bump this topic any more, other than to thank you fine explorers for your input on this worry of mine. Long life the Silk Road!