Cargo securityRevamping inbound mail security

After an explosive printer cartridge was found last year en route to the United States in UPS and FedEx shipments, DHS tightened security for inbound international cargo and temporarily banned all shipments from Yemen. DHS and industry are now collaborating to establish “precautionary” security measures and improve the flow of parcels and packages.

DHS official Philip Warker who heads up mail issues at the Office International Affairs, said discussions were being held at the highest level into improving the situation for mail, and that now was the time for the industry to provide ideas and solutions.

He pointed out that DHS has been holding discussions with the World Trade Organization, Universal Postal Union, PostEurop, and major postal operators including the U.S. Postal Service on how to improve the collection and handling of advanced notice data.

Warker has been pushing for the adoption of internationally developed postal standards and the recognition of certified companies and mail-handling buildings.

Thomas Kipp, DHL Global Mail chief executive, said last week that the security measures imposed by the TSA had “really put a lot of stress on things.”

Nevertheless, he said that DHL was attempting to be pragmatic on the situation, working with the DHS and TSA.

“DHL is meeting all the requirements and exceeding them,” he said. “We’re still not out of it, but then there never will be 100% security.”

The TSA’s layered security system does not have an efficient approach to handling items from “unknown senders,” leading to delays and shipping backlogs. According to TSA guidelines, a known mailer is someone who has an account with a foreign post or shipper, and has been doing business with the operator for at least 30 days. It is for the shipper, however, to determine and vouch for a known mailer, the TSA itself does not determine a mailer’s status directly.

Carl-Gerold Mende, board member at Austria Post, said the TSA was “correctly concerned about the unknown sender”, and that postal companies had been thinking about security issues for “years and years.”

Warker believed that certifying operators and mail-processing hubs that would soon be recognized in the TSA system would be a step in the right direction. “If you meet the requirements and you have a certified building, there shouldn’t be a problem,” he said, adding that DHS officials recognized that the required waiting period for mail items did not help with threats such as pressure-activated devices.