have been able to routinely smuggle in banned items. that explains the rise in use of those full-body scanners which some critics call electronic strip search, and those intimate pat-downs some pilots equate with sexual molestation. transportation security administration chief john pistole says children under 12 will be exempted from the pat-down. that comes after a flood of complaints. >> it is ridiculous that 100% of the people are being put through that's very intrusive measures when you know that 100% of the people are not risks. >> reporter: tsa officials say they're working on a system to exempt pilots, who already undergo extensive security checks. asked if the pat-downs make him uncomfortable, pistole said yes, but they're necessary. >> so the intelligence, coupled with the repeated covert testing, led me to conclude that we needed to be more thorough. >> reporter: the government continues to receive intelligence suggesting terrorists are intent on smuggling bomb components on planes bound for the u.s. so far, almost 400 body scan