How Would Sir Care to be Invaded?

An old story today but I'm interested to get people's reactions. There was a lot of outcry over the proposal to use new millimetre wave technology body scanners at airports recently. The scanners produce a very clear image of the subject's (naked) body, revealing any concealed items, such as knives or guns. Understandably, many find the idea of being subject to such a search unacceptably invasive, no matter how quick and convenient.

But what do you think of this product? This was proposed for use in prisons. It's seat that will scan the subject's 'bodily cavities' while they are still fully clothed. They call it 'Boss' - Body Orifice Security Scanner'. While I'm certainly not immune to a sense that between its name, function and resemblance to an electric chair it all seems a little bit like something out of a dystopian movie, I want to try and put aside the 'yuck factor' in figuring out what I think about this. In assessing the rights and wrongs of using this product, surely the question of what it is replacing has to be significant. If a prisoner was suspected of smuggling a mobile phone (the main problem targeted) the alternative would presumably be an even more unpleasant physical cavity search. I can't imagine anyone preferring that to sitting down in Boss.

However, I think this very 'convenience' opens the door to a further potential danger. If these are installed in prisons I would imagine that these searches will become more widespread. And while I think it's less invasive than the alternative, it's hardly neutral. Comments?