Decisions made by the US and UK governments ban laptops and tablets in hand luggage on some flights. This measure is intended to act as a deterrent against terrorist attacks and was partly prompted by the use of iPads as bombs.
The ban, affecting flights from countries in the Middle East and North Africa, took effect over the weekend. The US National Security Agency has previously said it is a measure against terrorists who are constantly looking for "innovative methods" to attack aircraft. Now, the iPad has been revealed to be one of those methods.
You could be interested in
One factor was the discovery of a plot to bring down the plane with explosives that were hidden in a fake iPad. The imitation is very accurate and realistic. Other details of the plot, such as the date, countries or groups involved, remain a mystery.
The discovery confirmed intelligence fears that Islamist groups had found a new way to smuggle explosives onto planes. This method was preceded by several unsuccessful attempts with a bomb in a shoe or in underwear.
The restrictions target carry-on luggage because a terrorist will book a window seat so that the bomb is directly next to the fuselage of the plane. This increases the risk ofancand to shoot down the plane.
Airports where this ban applies are selected based on an assessment of the quality of their security checks. Still, discrepancies between US- and UK-designated airports raise questions. The expert, quoted by the Guardian, said it was strange that other Western countries apparently did not share these concerns.
One problem is that UK and US restrictions are different. This despite an exceptionally high level of information sharing. Other western countries have not even implemented any bans. This raises questions as to why they came to different conclusions.
Fake iPads are widely available in China. Some are just non-functional dummies, while others run Android skinned to look like iOS.
Source: MacRumors
