Travelling public recognises need for more security

In view of events this week it is timely to revisit a survey which reveals that Australians are relatively security aware - but don't want to pay for additional security.

The survey, conducted by Unisys, showed that 98 per cent of Australians believe that more action needed to be undertaken to make domestic air travel secure from the threat of terrorism.

Baggage screening was the area of greatest concern with 91 per cent of Australians saying they believe there needs to be nationally consistent screening of all baggage at all Australian airports.

Other actions Australians believed airlines and airports need to undertake included:

* 88 per cent supported nationally consistent screening of all commercial goods carried as cargo

* 90 per cent supported all passengers having to prove their identity before boarding

* 84 per cent supported nationally consistent passenger baggage tracking

* 62 per cent supported stricter criteria on hand luggage such as a ban on liquids

* 60 per cent supported greater restrictions on vehicles at airports and people who are not passengers

In terms of passengers taking personal action to make domestic airline travel safer, 98 per cent said they would undertake one or more of the following:

* Arrive 30 minutes earlier for extra screening: 84 per cent

* Provide a fingerprint or biometric to airlines: 71 per cent

* Participate in a ‘travellers identity’ scheme: 68 per cent

* Stop taking items such as liquids in hand luggage: 71 per cent

* Have all bags electronically tagged for monitoring: 91 per cent

* Arrive at the airport via a ‘secure drop off point’: 58 per cent

* Pay extra for tickets for increased security: 55 per cent

The results were broadly similar across all states and across demographics including sex, education, income and work status.

A later survey, the Unisys Security Index from October 2009, also show that Australian are typically strong supporters of the use of technology to prove their identity.

When asked about their level of willingness to use a biometric identifier such as fingerprints, voice, eye scanning or hand scans to authenticate identification, 66 per cent were willing to use a biometric for identity authentication:

Note that only around half of respondents were willing to pay more for the additional security. Does this mean that they place a low value on their lives? Or just that someone else should pay?