Once when I was boarding a plane to fly into TLV from Athens, I got about 200 questions in the space of 5 minutes, from 3 different people. When I mentioned who I used to work for, they asked me what that kind of work entailed, what did my office building look like, what city was it in, where was I living at that time, why was I living somewhere else, etc. I got the same questions multiple times, spaced apart.
They don't actually give a crap what my old office building looked like. They're looking for responses that appear delayed, evasive, made up.
After the questions I had to follow them to another room to have my bags meticulously inspected and scanned. They then checked my bags for me (breaking my zipper in the process - and no, the airline didn't do jack about it) and finally let me board. After I was on, they barged on and insisted some older passenger who had been sitting quietly leave the plane immediately while it was on the tarmac, and left.
Traveling through Israel is a pain in the ass.
There was one time, the company missed issue me that letter. I had to go thru the 2 hours security hell which they inspected and questioned everything.
After that, I have decided that I would never go back to Israel again for biz or any other purposes. It is just not worth it.
I think you mean the other way around. If you are being asked all these questions the flight was from TLV to Athens. Right?
"El Al security procedures require that all passengers be interviewed individually prior to boarding, allowing El Al staff to identify possible security threats. Passengers are asked questions about their place of origin, the reason for their trip, their job or occupation, and whether they have packed their bags themselves. [...] Even at overseas airports, El Al security agents conduct all luggage searches personally, even if they are supervised by government or private security firms."
I've also faced heightened security traveling from TLV to other airports, featuring another barrage of questions and extra screening. But to their credit, they helped me skip some lines and get to the plane just before it left.
https://www.asi-mag.com/ann-marie-murphy-hindawi-affair-30th...
Exactly. AFIK I responded normally.
Not to mention someone actually doing something malicious with their computer probably wouldn't tell security they're a SW eng.
Well isn't this true? I am sorry for your ordeal but there is nothing an airline can do with this matter. Have you tried contacting the airport itself?
None of this makes sense on the face of it. I wonder if you were connected to a network that was compromised and they tracked your computer? Also unlikely.
Do you think the last person you talked to was just having a bad day and as you got annoyed you triggered them and they took it on you?
As others have referenced, Israeli airport security use profiling extensively. The questions that are asked are almost (but not quite) irrelevant - they are trained to gauge a person's reactions, their unconscious biological responses, etc.
It seems likely to me that what they keyed in on wasn't the author's questions, responses, or even their general attitude, but the overall resistance to having their laptop searched. The distinction between "I resent this process and need my laptop for work" and "If they take my laptop I'm going to be in trouble" is probably below the threshold of their training. I'd even say it's possible that the author's reaction to having their laptop confiscated was part of the profiling technique.
The fact that they let them continue on to their flight tells me that they didn't perceive them to be a security risk at the end of the process.
I’m having a bit of trouble understanding the rationale allowing continued travel, but not allowing continued travel with the laptop. Can anyone here shed a bit of light on this?
> The distinction between "I resent this process and need my laptop for work" and "If they take my laptop I'm going to be in trouble" is probably below the threshold of their training.
And I agree with you. But 1000s of people must resent the process and need their laptops! If they picked up on that, they would have to confiscate laptops approaching 100% of the time they asked people questions about it.
I heard before that Israeli security can be scary if they sense you went to either Palestinian areas or some of their flags get triggered. But no excuse for them to do what they do.
I hope you raising this issue help you get your laptop back.
I personally worry that they might take my laptop from me and install some spyware, so I try not to carry one, or if I do, travel with Chromebook. Whenever I can get away without carrying laptop, it is huge relief to just breeze through customs. Essentially excuses they have to talk to you are diminished and potential for some unpleasant interaction are greatly reduced.
I carry Kindle and if I have to Chromebook, life is much simpler. Friends borrow me their laptops if I have to do some work.
Again, sorry for what is happening to you, I can't even imagine how horrible you are feeling, hope for quick and positive resolution.
Did you get a taxi to the airport, or dropped from a friend?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Gurion_Airport#Top_destina...
I assume they're very comfortable with Turkish Airlines at this point.
Oh absolutely. That also means they are very good at identifying who does and who does not "fit" the standard profile of a regular flyer for that specific flight. OP tripped something.
* The security of the laptop, electronic devices in its vicinity, or the purchaser is not guaranteed.
This is airport security in Israel. It's not security theater. It's the real deal. There is something in this story that is missing. You may not know what it is, but those people are really good at their jobs. Was that really your laptop? Were all the files on it really yours? Were you really just there as a SW engineer? Did you really tell them the truth to all 20 questions?
You've claimed to spend time in the country. You know how it works. The people in security make good money and have access to tons of resources ... they don't want your laptop for fun or a side hustle. If you have a grievance against the Israeli government, there is due process there just like in the US. It works as well there as it does in the US. File a suit... the courts will sort this out. (Edit: You also would have received a claim ticket for confiscated property, just like in many US jurisdictions. Something is missing from this story.)
Publicity just makes you look like you are acting in bad faith.
> A few months earlier in the same airport, a tech engineer returning from a business trip to London objected when a federal agent asked him to type his password into his laptop computer. "This laptop doesn't belong to me," he remembers protesting. "It belongs to my company." Eventually, he agreed to log on and stood by as the officer copied the Web sites he had visited, said the engineer, a U.S. citizen who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of calling attention to himself.
https://boingboing.net/2008/02/07/tsa-confiscating-lap.html
Except in Israel the threat is real, and the security guards are actually competent
Completely agree here. Millions pass through TLV every year and don't have their laptops confiscated, something twigged their interest.
The question is why he was able to carry on flying