People traveling to the United Stated from overseas have to turn on their electronics as a new security measure, the Transportation Security Administration announced Sunday.
Security officers were allowed to ask passengers to turn on their devices, including cellphones. Powerless ones would not be allowed on airplanes, the TSA stated in a press release.
The regulation was in effect in airports in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. TSA agents at the Los Angeles International Airport did not know if the new measure would be issued in the states in the near future.
“Our job is to try to anticipate the next attack, not simply react to the last one. And so we continually evaluate the world situation and we know that there remains a terrorist threat to the United States, and aviation security is a large part of that,” U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said.
The new regulation came one week after the department stated it would direct the TSA to implement new measures in light of recent information.