Over 1,400 security badges were lost or stolen from a Georgia airport, an investigation has revealed, exposing major concerns for experts during a time of heightened security at airports across the world.
The badges were stolen from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport over time between 2012 and 2014, the investigation by ABC affiliate WSB-TV found.
Airport officials presented several reasons as to why the stolen badges are not likely a security threat, including the fact that badges are deactivated once they are reported missing.
But according to ABC aviation security expert John Nance, it could be a problem.
"I do think it's a concern. I don't think it's a panic," Nance told WSB.
"Anything that happens where we give somebody the opportunity to try to get into a secure area even if there is a number of things involved is a serious situation," he said.
The airport said in a statement that all secured areas can only be accessed with a PIN and valid badge, which has a photo of the employee.
"Due to these safeguards, we do not believe that lost or stolen badges pose a significant security threat to the airport," airport spokesperson Reese McCraine told WSB.
But Stephen Ganyard, a former Marine Corps fighter pilot and also ABC News consultant, pointed out how easy it can be for someone to slip through a secured area.
"Everybody knows they've been around places when somebody has a security badge and they say 'Oh, he has a badge, we'll just let him in,' or they can follow me through the door," Ganyard told the station.
An unnamed official from the Atlanta airport said such "piggybacking" is not allowed and is punishable by a fine or loss of job, ABC News reported.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport currently does not practice biometric screening when hiring workers, which includes fingerprints and eye checks.
Despite the security concern, airport officials stressed that compared to its more than 60,000 airport employees, 1,400 missing badges is not a major loss.
