--- title: BlipTrack: U.S. Airports to Use Your Phone to Track Wait Times description: A first-in-the-nation system to monitor security checkpoint wait times using travelers’ connected devices. canonical: https://time.com/2889777/bliptrack-airports-phones/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-06-17T14:45:58.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:02:33.143Z article:section: Business og:title: BlipTrack: U.S. Airports to Use Your Phone to Track Wait Times og:description: A first-in-the-nation system to monitor security checkpoint wait times using travelers’ connected devices. og:url: https://time.com/2889777/bliptrack-airports-phones/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: BlipTrack: U.S. Airports to Use Your Phone to Track Wait Times twitter:description: A first-in-the-nation system to monitor security checkpoint wait times using travelers’ connected devices. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # U.S. Airports to Begin Leveraging Your Smartphone to Track Wait Times by [Techlicious](/author/techlicious/) ## Techlicious Jun 17, 2014 2:45 PM CUT by [Techlicious](/author/techlicious/) ## Techlicious Jun 17, 2014 2:45 PM CUT The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport is installing a first-in-the-nation system to monitor security checkpoint wait times using travelers’ smartphones and other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, [Bloomberg Businessweek is reporting](http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-06-12/to-speed-up-security-lines-airports-start-tracking-your-smartphone "undefined"). The system, known as [BlipTrack](http://www.blipsystems.com/ "undefined"), works by tracking the unique Media Access Control (MAC) addresses of phones and other devices actively searching for a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection in the airport. The location of your phone will only be tracked as it moves through certain pre-defined areas, and no personally identifying data will be collected. Airport officials claim the system poses no [threat to your privacy](http://www.techlicious.com/protecting-your-privacy/ "undefined"). The nuts and bolts behind BlipTrack are virtually identical to [the customer-tracking system tested by retailer Nordstrom](http://www.techlicious.com/blog/how-nordstrom-tracked-customers-by-their-smartphone/ "undefined") early last year. The choice to move forward with the BlipTrack system is curious, given that [Apple is removing the ability for MAC addresses to be tracked in iOS 8](http://www.techlicious.com/blog/apple-iphone-ios8-mac-address-change/ "undefined"). Should [Google’s Android OS](http://www.techlicious.com/review/8-reasons-you-should-consider-switching-to-android/ "undefined") follow suit, Cincinnati’s system could be obsolete just months after it’s installed. BlipTrack, already in use in major international airports worldwide, is expected to go live in Cincinnati next month. _This article was written by Fox Van Allen and_ [_originally appeared on Techlicious_](http://www.techlicious.com/blog/bliptrack-system-cincinatti-regional-airport/ "undefined")_._ **More from Techlicious:** * [Grilling Accessories for the Perfect Cookout](http://www.techlicious.com/guide/grilling-tools-tech-accessories/ "undefined") * [Federal Government Seeks Authority to Regulate Mapping Apps](http://www.techlicious.com/blog/grow-america-transportation-bill-map-regulation/ "undefined") * [Stop Home Disasters Before They Happen](http://www.techlicious.com/guide/tech-that-keeps-an-eye-on-your-home-while-youre-away/ "undefined") * [Google to Launch Fitness Data Aggregation Service](http://www.techlicious.com/blog/google-fit-activity-tracker-aggregation/ "undefined") * [Panasonic Lumix FZ1000 Covers 90% of Shooting Scenarios](http://www.techlicious.com/blog/panasonic-lumix-dmc-fz1000/ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2889777/bliptrack-airports-phones/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2889777/bliptrack-airports-phones/"},"headline":"U.S. Airports to Begin Leveraging Your Smartphone to Track Wait Times","datePublished":"2014-06-17T14:45:58.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:02:33.143Z","description":"A first-in-the-nation system to monitor security checkpoint wait times using travelers’ connected devices.","url":"https://time.com/2889777/bliptrack-airports-phones/","keywords":["Tech","Innovation","Consumers","Travel","Airports"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Techlicious","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/techlicious/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2889777/bliptrack-airports-phones/","name":"U.S. Airports to Begin Leveraging Your Smartphone to Track Wait Times"}}]}] ```