The TSA swears their scanners can’t see internal items, but what happened when a traveler saw a ‘big red box’ will make you furious

A traveler’s viral TikTok video detailing a “big red box” that appeared over her crotch on a TSA scanner monitor is fueling massive suspicion that the security technology is detecting internal menstrual products, directly contradicting official claims. This is a huge deal for privacy, and frankly, the TSA’s response is making the situation incredibly frustrating for women who menstruate.

The situation started when Cynthia Starich (@cynthiastarich) went through airport security. She explained in her video that after she stepped through the body scanner, the machine started beeping. When she looked at the graph displayed on the monitor, she saw a clear, large red box right over her crotch area, and she knew immediately it wasn’t just her clothing.

Starich, who posted the video from the terminal, asked the TSA agents if the scanner had picked up her tampon. They quickly assured her that the machine is only designed to detect “extra layers.” Starich called this explanation “bulls**t.” As found by Daily Dot, she claims the officials were making the situation weird by not just being honest about what the machine saw. So if you’re not delayed because of a bomb threat, you’re taking longer than the foretold “one minute” getting seen in ways you really shouldn’t be.

TSA scanners are far too invasive

This whole situation is confusing because the official word from transit authorities directly clashes with what Starich and countless other travelers are reporting. A TSA spokesperson, R. Carter Langston, stated in an interview that the millimeter wave imaging technology they use is not capable of penetrating the skin or detecting items inside a passenger’s body. This means, according to the TSA, the scanners cannot see anything internal, including tampons or IUDs.

However, the TSA does admit that the scanners can detect certain external menstrual products, such as period underwear, menstrual pads, and DivaCups. If you’re wearing any of those, you can definitely expect a flag.

But Starich’s experience of a tampon being flagged resonated with thousands of menstruating passengers who quickly flocked to the comments section of her video, sharing similar anecdotal evidence. Many travelers believe the scanners are picking up far more than the officials are letting on.

Ultimately, the biggest issue here is privacy. If the TSA scanners are indeed picking up sensitive internal items, that feels like a massive violation. As one user pointed out, accepting a full body scanner image just to travel freely within your own country is a gross violation of privacy. You shouldn’t have to worry about a government agency having seemingly unfettered access to sensitive personal information just because you’re traveling while menstruating.

It’s clear the agency needs to address this widespread anecdotal evidence and explain why so many travelers are experiencing the exact same issue if the technology supposedly can’t detect these items. Until then, you can expect the conversation about TSA and menstrual privacy to keep heating up.