police photography
No Pictures - Really?
<p>In order to fly out of Pereira, Colombia, today, I was forced to do a
full-body x-ray.  I was allowed
to see the x-ray and it was very detailed, showing bones and internal
organs, but I was not allowed to take a photo of the image.  I wanted the
photo for my own benefit since I've had some stomach problems lately
(and for future comparisons) and since I had already "suffered" the x-ray
radiation.</p>

<p>Can I legally fight the photo denial?  Is there a way to either
succesfully take a photo next time or to sue the government?  My thinking
is that the forced image of my body belongs more to me than to the police.</p>

<p>I imagine that this question is hard to answer for Colombia, so would
accept an answer which would apply in case this ever happened in
California, USA.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.ipc.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/Resources/wholebodyimaging.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">This paper</a> (Canadian author, but references from across North American and Europe) suggests an answer - the scanners are configured so every image is deleted immediately after use.</p>

<p>It's not that airport authorities are keeping pictures of you to which you're entitled - quite the opposite. As a privacy measure no one - including both you and the airport authorities - is entitled to make or retain a copy of the image.</p>

<p>Not only would there be no legal basis to insist on a copy, you would be asking for something that ceased to exist the moment you left the security area.</p>
