A new policy to make whole-body imaging a primary screening method in US airports has been announced by the Transportation Security Administration.

The technology is used by 19 US airports such as BWI and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, examiner.com reports.

Instead of walking through a metal detector, passengers undergo a virtual strip search, which takes 17 seconds to screen each passenger.

The whole-body imaging generates revealing graphic images and has raised concerns by different organisations such as the American Civil Liberties Union.