We’ve had the Shoe Bomber, the Underwear Bomber, and next up is expected to be a body-part bomber. Security officials are concerned that Al Qaeda will outfit women with explosive breast implants. Breast augmentation was performed 355,671 times in 2008 outpacing even the number of liposuction operations. The implant could easily be filled with the explosive PETN.

While Mr. Abdulmutallab only had a few grams sewn into his underwear during the Christmas day episode, a breast implant could hold 100’s of grams enough to bring down an airliner. But breasts are not the only body part which could be implanted with an explosive, consider that men could use his abdomen or buttocks. Also, as Elan Singer of Forbes Magazine, a plastic surgeon, noted, the implant does not have to be a professional job; a simple surgery only needs a knife and some suture material.

Anyone thinking that those new, expensive body scanners, costing $150,000 each, would detect the explosives is mistaken. The image would not be precise enough to detect the difference between saline or PETN-filled body parts. So expect longer lines at the security checkpoints. As we contemplate the possibility of a full body cavity search in order to board a plan, we need to get smarter about security screening. We need to target likely suspects- this is not “profiling” but carrying out necessary detective or research techniques.