--- description: If a device won't turn on, it won't be allowed on the plane title: TSA Beefs Up Cell-Phone Checks at Overseas Airports image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4b995b08851b8d31/69869aa5e53aba26394d3764/tsa-airport-security.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [National Security](/tag/national-security/) ## National Security Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # TSA Beefs Up Cell Phone Checks at Overseas Airports  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 6, 2014 8:10 PM CUT  DENVER, CO - JUNE 16: The TSA security lines in the main terminal are crowded with vacation travelers on June 16, 2013, in Denver, Colorado. Located 25 miles from downtown, Denver International Airport is the largest airport in the United States. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images) DENVER, CO - JUNE 16: The TSA security lines in the main terminal are crowded with vacation travelers on June 16, 2013, in Denver, Colorado. Located 25 miles from downtown, Denver International Airport is the largest airport in the United States. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)George Rose—Getty Images  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 6, 2014 8:10 PM CUT The Transportation Security Administration will ask U.S.-bound travelers at certain overseas airports to [power up their cell phones](http://www.tsa.gov/press/releases/2014/07/06/enhanced-security-measures-certain-airports-overseas "undefined") and mobile devices as a part of enhanced security measures amid new security concerns. Owners of devices that cannot turn on will not be allowed to bring them onto the plane, the TSA announced in a statement Saturday. The owners may also face additional screening. The news follows Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson’s [instructions](http://www.dhs.gov/news/2014/07/02/statement-secretary-johnson "undefined") for the TSA to step up security at foreign airports with direct flights to the U.S. earlier this week. It also follows reports from ABC News citing U.S. intelligence analysts that terrorist groups in Syria were [developing new kinds of bombs](http://abcnews.go.com/US/syria-threat-prompt-airports/story?id=24351979 "undefined") to be brought onto commercial planes. The Department of Homeland Security is also asking airport authorities in Europe and other locations to increase random screenings of U.S.-bound travelers and more closely scrutinize shoe size, [ABC reports](http://abcnews.go.com/US/cell-phones-scrutinized-tsa/story?id=24445160 "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2960370/tsa-cell-phones-overseas-airports/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2960370/tsa-cell-phones-overseas-airports/"},"headline":"TSA Beefs Up Cell Phone Checks at Overseas Airports","datePublished":"2014-07-06T20:10:45.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T08:59:29.853Z","description":"Electronic devices that don't switch on won't be allowed on the plane","url":"https://time.com/2960370/tsa-cell-phones-overseas-airports/","keywords":["National Security","Transportation","Air travel","Department of Homeland Security"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4b995b08851b8d31/69869aa5e53aba26394d3764/tsa-airport-security.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Nolan Feeney","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/nolan-feeney/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4b995b08851b8d31/69869aa5e53aba26394d3764/tsa-airport-security.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"The TSA security lines in the main terminal are crowded with vacation travelers on June 16, 2013, in Denver,.","caption":"The TSA security lines in the main terminal are crowded with vacation travelers on June 16, 2013, in Denver,.","creditText":"George Rose—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"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/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/national-security/","name":"National Security"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2960370/tsa-cell-phones-overseas-airports/","name":"TSA Beefs Up Cell Phone Checks at Overseas Airports"}}]}] ```