WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) — Terrorist groups have been perfecting and testing a bomb that can be hidden in a laptop computer and evade security scanners, U.S. intelligence officials told CBS News.
The officials said Al-Qaeda and ISIS have been developing the device, and the concern about explosives hidden in laptops or other large personal electronic devices prompted the U.S. and UK governments from banning such devices on flights from designated countries.
Larger electronics are now banned in carry-on luggage on nonstop flights to the U.S. from 10 airports based in Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Quatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
The policy includes any electronics larger than a smartphone, including laptops, iPads, cameras and other electronics. Those devices will now have to be checked. Medical devices are exempt.
New intelligence suggests that the terror groups are testing the new bomb on airport scanners they have obtained, officials told CBS News.
The airport scanning technology now used to inspect carry-on bags in the U.S. is nearly 10 years old, and it is based on an X-ray machine, CBS News noted.
In a statement to CBS News, the Department of Homeland security said: ”As a matter of policy, we do not publicly discuss specific intelligence information. However, evaluated intelligence indicates that terrorist groups continue to target commercial aviation, to include smuggling explosive devices in electronics."
