Some passengers at select U.S. airports will be able to go through security a lot faster beginning this month thanks to a program being tested by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Getting in the fast lane, however, requires a down payment in the form of personal data.

Airports in Atlanta, Detroit, Dallas/Fort Worth and Miami are the first to test the TSA's program of allowing pre-screened frequent flyers a faster way through security. The airports selected are hubs for Delta Air Lines and American Airlines. The TSA won't specify all the criteria it used for inviting certain frequent flyers to participate, but travel histories and details provided by the airlines with the consent of their most frequent flyers were part of the selection process. Participants, who must be U.S. citizens, have agreed to submit to background checks in exchange for the expedited security screening. Eligible participants will have their information embedded in barcodes on their boarding passes. There will be designated checkpoints where the barcodes can be read. Verified eligible passengers will subsequently be directed to a dedicated security lane. The faster screening will permit shoes, belts and jackets to remain on; liquids and gels to remain in carry-on luggage; and laptops to remain inside their cases.

Currently there are less than 10,000 participants but the TSA expects those numbers to grow if the results of the tests prove successful. The agency is expected expand the program to more airlines and airports after the results of the pilot tests are evaluated. In addition to select frequent flyers of Delta and American, certain members of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Trusted Traveler programs, including Global Entry, SENTRI, and NEXUS who are U.S. citizens are eligible to participate, according to the TSA. For the test period, the TSA lists the following checkpoints that can be used by eligible participants who have opted into the program:

• Atlanta: T-South Checkpoint
• Dallas: Terminal C, Checkpoint C30
• Detroit: Checkpoint 2 on the ticketing level
• Miami: D2 Checkpoint

Expedited screening is not a given, however. According to the TSA's web site, "TSA will always incorporate random and unpredictable security measures throughout the airport and no individual will be guaranteed expedited screening in order to retain a certain element of randomness to prevent terrorists from gaming the system."