By Ricky Tyus, Owner Tyus Tours & Travel
The Truth Travel Guide
Despite being a frequent traveler, I had never heard of SSSS. But on a recent trip, I learned what it meant. Turns out, it is an acronym for “Secondary Security Screening Selection,” a process that started after 9/11. Normally, I love a good alliteration—but not this one. Unfortunately, it does not involve being selected for an upgrade or free airline ticket. Here is what happened to me.
The night before my flight from Antigua back to the U.S., I attempted to check in online, only to receive an error message stating that I was unable to do so. I thought it was odd but assumed it was just a computer glitch. Well, you know what they say about making assumptions.
The next day at the airport, I encountered another strange situation but, again, I brushed it off as just a quirk that happens at this airport. When I checked in two bags, the airline agent asked which one belonged to me and which one belonged to my friend. Since both were identical and mostly filled with dirty laundry, I had no interest in digging through them to figure it, so I replied, “They’re both ours.” She then placed tags on each bag.
“That was weird. Why does it matter which bag is yours or mine?” I asked my friend. She shrugged. “I don’t know.” That settled that.
We made our way through security to the gate, where the airport’s dining and shopping options were underwhelming. With nothing better to do, I settled in with my book. Just as the plot was getting interesting, my friend interrupted. “They just called your name over the loudspeaker. You need to go to the gate.” “I have never been called before. Why are they calling me?” I muttered, feeling like a kid being summoned to the principal’s office. Had I done something wrong? Were they about to scold me for overstuffing my luggage with dirty laundry? Nervously, I approached the airline agent. She took one look at my boarding pass and said, “You have been selected for Secondary Security Screening Selection. Make sure you stay close by.” Then, as if revealing some grand mystery, she pointed to the lower right-hand corner of my boarding pass, where “SSSS” was printed. Before I could ask any questions, she instructed me to sit down and wait. And that is when I knew—this was not going to be a normal travel day. I returned to my seat, and my friend looked at me expectantly. “What did they want?”
Curious and slightly panicked, I Googled my situation. TSA flagged me before I arrived at the airport. The first clue was not being able to check in online; the second was the SSSS on my boarding pass. My research showed this could be due to being on a watchlist, having suspicious travel patterns, or random selection.
I panicked, wondering if I’d miss my flight or be stuck here forever. Before I could completely stress out, they called my name again. In a waiting area with four other women my age, one asked, “Do you know what this is? Why are we here?” I shared what little I knew from five minutes of online research.
My friend, standing just outside the makeshift area but obviously eavesdropping, chimed in: “We could not check in either. And I was wondering what that ‘SSSS’ meant.” A quick consensus emerged: We were all just people who wanted to lie on a Caribbean beach for a few days. No criminal backgrounds that we knew of no shady pasts (except one woman who overindulged in the open bar at the resort, but that hardly counted). It had to have been random, right?
My name was then called for the third time that day. I glanced back at my new inmates—I mean, friends—who gave me reassuring smiles and nods, as if to say, “You’ll be fine!” But let us be real, they knew just as much as I did. Which was not much. They had not even Googled “SSSS” like I had.
The tiny, partitioned area had all the charm of a budget courtroom: a table, my two checked suitcases, and a TSA officer in gloves. Oh good, gloves.
“Is this your luggage?” she asked. Now, this is the part in all those crime shows where the accused looks dramatically at the camera and demands a lawyer. And if they don’t, the other characters later ask, “Why didn’t you request a lawyer?!” I resisted the urge to dramatically shout, “I want my lawyer!” and simply said, “Yes, those are my suitcases,” while hoping my friend did not pack anything questionable.
The officer opened both bags and began sorting through the dirty underwear, bathing suits, and sunscreen. My anxiety melted away, replaced by genuine curiosity: Is she getting hazard pay for this? I mean, gloves did not seem like enough protection. I also thought, Maybe I should have cleaned my clothes or at least my underwear—gross! The entire process felt like it lasted hours, but in reality, it was probably only about ten minutes.
After finding nothing unusual, she patted me down like when a metal detector goes off. It honestly was not that bad.
I rejoined my friends, who were relieved to see me unharmed and without handcuffs. I was not permitted to leave the area, so I had to go directly to boarding when it was time.
As I walked across the tarmac, I bade farewell to my fellow detainees. In that moment, I could not help but reflect on our shared experiences, which highlighted the challenges and intricacies of detention procedures.
While no official explanation of the SSSS selection process is available, TPG has gathered anecdotal information from our staff, readers, and public news stories to determine some items that might flag you for additional screening, either one time or with aggravating frequency.
Targeted “suspicious” activities like booking one-way tickets, purchasing tickets using cash, taking unusual itineraries, or traveling to a flagged destination.
Travel to and from Türkiye seems to have been a trigger item for repeated SSSS screenings in recent years, according to multiple TPG readers and staff members.
Subjective decisions by TSA staff on-site who see “suspicious” behavior.
Purely random selection; there may be a quota of 10% or so of passengers.