TSA to allow travelers' laptops to stay packed

Beginning August 16, the US Transportation Safety Administration will no longer expressly require laptops to be removed from luggage at airport security checkpoints if they are kept in appropriate bags.

The allowance has been made, according to the TSA, to help streamline the security check process and reduce the likelihood of damage to travelers' important hardware.

While some airports already allowed laptops to be contained within a single carry-on in expedited checkpoints, the TSA has now afforded the option to all travelers, provided their laptop is in one of the following:

The allowance has already been criticized for actually complicating the already time-consuming security screening process. Because all laptop bags produced up until now have not had a standard such as this to adhere to, there is no guarantee that a bag that passes screening at one airport will pass at another.

The TSA mentions that there will soon be bags available that are labeled as "laptop friendly," and notes that due to the random nature of screening protocols, even these may have to be opened and re-screened.