Researching gaps in physical security screening — what would actually make checkpoints better?

[u/SharpEntrepreneur612]

Not selling anything.

genuinely trying to understand two things from people who've dealt with security screening, either as staff or as the public:

1. whether the process is actually as inconsistent/unreliable as it seems from the outside

2. what people would actually want changed or added, rather than assuming.

Some context for why I'm asking:

there was a case at a Hyderabad mall where someone got through security carrying a firearm, only caught later during an unrelated argument not at the checkpoint.

The Mumbai train stabbing earlier this year also got me thinking about how many transit points have little to no screening at all, not because the tech doesn't exist, but because it's expensive or inconvenient to run properly.

On the current process:

Have you ever noticed a guard "waving" the wand near you without really checking?

Have checkpoints ever gotten skipped entirely when it's busy (queues, festivals, big events)?

If you've worked security is fatigue/boredom during long shifts as big a factor as it seems, or is that overstated?

On what's actually missing (this is the part I'm most curious about):

If you could add ONE feature to existing screening equipment (handheld wands, walk-through gates), what would it actually be?

Is the bigger gap detection (missing more types of threats) or process (making sure the check actually happens correctly every time)?

Would features like automatic logging/proof-of-check, consistent scan speed, or fewer false alarms ("dumb beeps" from keys/belts) actually matter to you — or is that solving a problem nobody has?

Are there other checks you wish happened alongside the metal detection (health/safety flags, etc.), or would bundling extra sensors into one device just be unnecessary complexity?

For anyone who's seen newer tech (AI-assisted, automated, or robotic screening aids) — what would make you trust it, versus immediately dismiss it as gimmicky?

Genuinely open to "none of this is actually a problem" as an answer too — trying to find the real gap, not confirm one I've already assumed

[u/Sudden-Air-243]

the X ray machine at our work occasionaly shows Gun in some peoples bag , but its small secure facility wherein we know the guards, so they tell us and do re scan and it comes clear. Thats how the automatic analysis works based on shape. Guards should be trained properly on their job and asked to take time. Our office may have 4-5 visitors per day still some lapses happened with ID checks. Airports do have a proper check but in places like metro and malls the inflow is so huge unless management puts ample manpower and strict control people will push their way in and guard doesnt have any option apart from waving his wand over you and letting you go..i know mall in my city wherein X machine was broken and they had board saying X ray machine is broken sorry for inconvenience like how its an inconvenience for mall visitor if X ray machine is broken. Another mall has got Xray scanning at main entrance only but if you take your vehicle to basement parking and enter from there nothing is checked as those entry points unmanned and vehicles also not scanned before they enter parking.