Security Screening Market Outlook, 2030

The global Security Screening Market is witnessing steady growth, driven by increasing awareness of security threats worldwide. Heightened global security concerns are compelling airports, borders, public venues, and critical infrastructure to adopt advanced screening solutions. Technological advancements, such as AI-enabled scanners, biometric systems, and touchless screening methods, are improving threat detection capabilities and operational efficiency. Rising investments in infrastructure development, including new airports, transportation hubs, and smart city projects, are further fueling the demand for sophisticated security screening solutions.

These factors collectively position the global security screening market for significant expansion in the coming years. The integration of advanced imaging technologies like millimeter-wave scanners and full-body scanners is providing enhanced detection capabilities without compromising passenger experience. These dual trends of escalating security threats and technological innovation are driving the growth of the security screening market, creating opportunities for companies to provide comprehensive and cutting-edge security solutions.

The implementation of advanced security screening technologies often raises concerns regarding privacy invasion and compliance with regulations such as GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and other data privacy laws. Balancing the need for effective security measures with individual privacy rights poses a significant challenge for security screening providers. Striking the right balance while ensuring compliance with relevant regulations is crucial to maintaining public trust and market acceptance.

According to the report, the Global Security Screening market was valued at more than USD 10.11 Billion in 2024, and expected to reach a market size of more than USD 15.43 Billion by 2030 with the CAGR of 7.46% from 2025-2030. Several organizations have implemented biometrics technology for physical and logistic access to mitigate the risks associated with data.

These technologies are deployed to provide access control, prevent theft or leakage control, and register the attendance of employees. For biometrics, employees do not have to remember passwords or carry anything to validate their identity. This makes the deployment of biometrics technologies much easier and quicker as compared to other security solutions.

These benefits are expected to further supplement the market growth. The X-ray security screening industry has evolved rapidly, and the integration of new technologies has made X-ray security screening easy to use, fast, and safe. The aforementioned factors have broadened the scope of X-ray security screening systems beyond industrial applications. Technological advancements in hardware such as detectors, sources, and tubes as well as software upgrades have contributed significantly towards enhancing the efficiency of X-ray security systems. Presently, upgrading existing security screening installations provides avenues for the industry’s growth.

The dominant players operating in the X-ray security screening industry include Thales; Smiths Detection, NEC Corporation; Teledyne FLIR LLC; and Bruker. Market players are keen to invest resources in research & development activities to support growth and enhance their internal business operations. In March 2021, NEC Corporation announced a new boarding technique for the departure of international flights using the facial recognition technology, Face Express. By registering their face, Face Express would allow passengers to enter and exit the airport without showing their passports or boarding pass.

Market Drivers

• Strict regulatory mandates: Governments around the world are increasingly imposing stricter regulations on security screening in airports, public venues, critical infrastructure and border crossings. These mandates compel operators to adopt advanced screening technologies to comply with safety and legal requirements. For example, the growth of global threats has heightened awareness that conventional screening may no longer suffice, driving investment into next generation systems.
• Technological advancement: the market is being driven by the dual momentum of rapid infrastructure build out and the availability of increasingly capable screening technologies. For instance, the adoption of biometric and contactless screening is enabling smoother flows and higher security simultaneously. Likewise, the need to secure new infrastructure (in emerging markets for example) creates fresh demand, and vendors are stepping up with more sophisticated solutions, which further fuels market growth.

Market Challenges

• High cost of deployment burden: One of the foremost hurdles is the high upfront cost of acquiring, installing and operating advanced screening systems. These costs are especially burdensome for smaller airports, government venues in developing regions or older infrastructure retrofits. Beyond purchase cost, ongoing maintenance, upgrades, training and system integration add to total cost of ownership, often slowing rollout or limiting scope of deployment.
• Privacy & regulatory compliance issues: Deploying new screening technologies often means integrating with legacy systems, modifying infrastructure, and ensuring interoperability, which can be technically complex and time consuming. For example, many facilities struggle to retrofit modern scanners into older checkpoints. In addition, the growing use of imaging, biometrics and data analytics in screening raises privacy concerns, data protection issues and regulatory risks. These issues can slow adoption and require additional safeguards, thereby increasing implementation complexity.

Market Trends

• Adoption of biometric: A clear trend is the shift toward biometric identification, along with touch less screening workflows. These approaches help authenticate individuals and screen baggage or persons with fewer manual interventions and higher throughput. This trend also intersects with the push for “seamless passenger experience” in airports and transport hubs, meaning screening systems must be fast, non intrusive and integrated into broader identity and travel systems.
• Automation and smart screening systems: another major trend is the integration of AI, machine learning and connected IoT devices into screening systems. These technologies can enhance detection accuracy, reduce false alarms, streamline operations, and provide analytics for continuous improvement. For example, AI enabled scanners can better identify unusual objects or behaviours. Automation is also reducing dependence on human operators and enabling higher throughput and efficiency a strong competitive differentiator in the market.

The baggage and cargo screening segment dominates the market due to high volumes at transportation hubs and evolving security threats driving demand for advanced screening technologies.

Logistics and transportation hubs airports, seaports, border crossings, logistics centres handle massive volumes of items daily. For instance, the Transportation Security Administration reports screening hundreds of millions of checked bags and a correspondingly enormous volume of air cargo shipments annually. Each bag or parcel represents a potential vector for prohibited items such as explosives, contraband, illicit trade goods, or even weapons. As such, screening baggage and cargo becomes a foundational security need rather than an optional layer. Secondly, regulatory frameworks around the world mandate comprehensive screening of both baggage and cargo.

In aviation especially, air cargo carried on commercial flights is subject to mandatory screening protocols, making the requirement nearly universal. Terrorist attacks, smuggling operations, concealed weapons and sophisticated exploitation of logistic systems raise the stakes for screening systems. Because baggage and cargo are inherently high volume, heterogeneous and complex to inspect, the need for advanced screening technologies such as X ray, computed tomography, explosive trace detection, automation and AI enabled analytics is more pronounced here than in many other screening arenas.

The growth of global trade, e commerce and logistics has significantly expanded cargo volumes and the complexity of parcel flows. As shipping networks expand, so do the potential screening points and the number of items needing inspection. For example, rising express delivery operations and cross border parcel shipments demand high throughput screening solutions tailored for baggage and cargo segments.

X ray detection technology is the largest segment in the global security screening market because it offers a mature and cost effective means of scanning people thus forming the backbone of screening infrastructure across transportation.

X ray systems have long proven their ability to image inside objects bags, parcels, containers and even humans to detect weapons, explosives, contraband and other illicit items with a level of penetrative capacity and resolution that many alternate technologies still struggle to match. Regulatory frameworks and global security mandates heavily lean on X ray systems.

For example, airports, seaports and customs agencies around the world have policies requiring non intrusive inspection of baggage and freight; many governments adopt standards referencing X ray or CT based screening technologies as baseline requirements. This regulatory anchoring ensures demand for X ray systems remains strong and recurrent as older units are upgraded or replaced.

Third, cost effectiveness and maturity favour X ray. Compared to more exotic scanning modalities, X ray systems offer a good balance of throughput, reliability, cost and maintainability. Vendors and operators are familiar with their lifecycle; supply chains are stable; performance is predictable. The sheer breadth of applications drives volume and scale. X ray systems are used in airports, border crossings, logistics hubs, postal and e commerce parcel inspection, critical infrastructure access, and delivering throughput under high load conditions.

Walk through metal detectors dominate the market equipment segment because they provide the most efficient and widely deployable solution for high throughput personnel screening in transportation hubs.

The environments in which security screening is most critical such as airports, train stations, stadiums, government facilities and large public events handle very large volumes of people passing through checkpoint portals. To maintain both security and flow, fixed walk‐through metal detectors are ideal: they enable rapid screening of individuals without the delays that more intrusive or slower technologies might cause. Regulatory and security policies around the world favour fixed walk through detectors as an essential baseline. Many jurisdictions mandate screening of passengers, visitors and personnel entering secured zones, and walk through detectors fulfill those mandates at a manageable cost and with established performance.

Their widespread adoption and standardization make them the default choice for many operators, reinforcing their dominance. They are relatively mature, cost effective, widely understood, easy to operate and maintain, and fit well within existing security infrastructure. They offer reliable detection of metallic threats and have been enhanced with multi zone sensing, discrimination features and improved throughput rates. The growth of sectors requiring mass screening primarily transportation, public venues and education and commercial facilities fuels the large installed base of walk through metal detectors. These sectors demand the ability to screen large numbers of individuals frequently and continuously, often under time pressure and operational constraints.

the baggage scanning application leads the market because almost every passenger and piece of checked luggage or cargo must be screened under strict regulatory mandates, creating a huge demand for scanning solutions.

The magnitude of the luggage and cargo flows across airports, rail stations, seaports, and border crossings is enormous. According to the Transportation Security Administration, in one year alone hundreds of millions of checked bags and countless parcels are processed screening must be near universal because air cargo, for instance, is carried on nearly all commercial flights and is subject to strict screening mandates. Because each piece of luggage or bag represents a potential vector for weapons, explosives or contraband, the screening requirement is nearly obligatory, ensuring that baggage scanning remains the largest application. Second, regulatory frameworks strongly reinforce baggage screening.

Aviation authorities, customs agencies and transport security bodies worldwide impose standards mandating that passenger baggage and cargo be inspected using approved technologies. The growth of global travel and trade further amplifies the scale. As passenger volumes rebound, airports expand, new terminals open and e commerce expands cargo flows, the throughput of bags and parcels increases accordingly. The increasing need for speed and efficiency in screening high volumes without sacrificing safety drives upgrades, expansion of capacity and replacement of older systems.

Technological evolution and investment cycles bolster the baggage application segment: scanning systems for baggage are among the most mature, widely installed, and frequently upgraded. Vendors deliver X ray, computed tomography (CT) and AI enabled baggage scanners airports and transport hubs tend to standardize and replace systems over their service lives, thus creating a recurring revenue stream.

Airports dominate the end user segment of the global security screening market because they combine the highest throughput of people and continuously invest in upgrades to cope with evolving threats.

Airports process enormous volumes of passengers, carry on items, checked bags, and cargo daily. This means the screening equipment footprint is vast and the frequency of deployment extremely high. Each checkpoint must handle large flows of individuals and luggage in short time windows, so operators invest in high throughput hardware and software to maintain security without crippling passenger experience. Regulatory and compliance demands at airports are among the most rigorous of any industry. Bodies such as the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), regional aviation authorities, national transportation security administrations and customs agencies impose mandatory screening of passengers, bags and cargo and access points.

Any lapse in detection can have dramatic safety, legal and reputational consequences. As a result, airports must continually invest in new screening technologies and infrastructure upgrades to comply with evolving standards and threat profiles. With expansion of airports in emerging markets, rising passenger counts in both domestic and international travel, and the creation of new terminals and hubs, there is a large green field and retrofit market for screening equipment. Airports are not only large in scale but also in complexity of threats and screening needs.

Unlike some other end user industries, airports must handle passenger movements, baggage flows, cargo shipments, staff and service vehicle access, each with distinct screening requirements and technology sets. The multiplicity of screening applications within the airport environment creates higher cumulative equipment, service and software demand than many other sectors.

North America is the largest region in the market because of its combination of intense security mandates and large scale of transport and border operations that together create massive demand.

The regulatory environment in the United States and Canada has created a high baseline of screening obligations across airports, border crossings, critical infrastructure and public venues. Agencies such as the Transportation Security Administration and the United States Department of Homeland Security have allocated large budgets for screening equipment, checked baggage systems, passenger screening lanes and border security upgrades. North America has hundreds of major airports processing populations of tens of millions of passengers annually, vast cross border land and maritime trade flows, and significant volumes of cargo to inspect.

One report notes North America supports about 450 commercial airports and processes very high passenger checkpoint volumes in 2024. Operators in airports, border agencies and critical infrastructure favour next generation screening systems such as AI enhanced X ray and CT scanners, explosive trace detection, biometric authentication and automated screening lanes. The presence of major technology vendors, strong R&D, and favorable procurement environments mean that North America often leads in rolling out newer systems. With concerns around terrorism, illegal trafficking, cybersecurity, mass transit security, and critical infrastructure protection the region continually upgrades its screening capabilities.

The market research notes that heightened security concerns and government focus are major drivers for the region. The aftermarket, upgrade and replacement economy is strong in North America. Given the large installed base of screening systems, there is a consistent demand for device refreshes, capacity expansion, maintenance services, software upgrades and system integrations.

• August 2025: OSI Systems reported record USD 1.713 billion revenue with a USD 1.8 billion backlog, driven by global cargo-inspection orders.
• July 2025: OSI Systems upsized its credit facility to 2030, fortifying liquidity for large government contracts.
• June 2025: BigBear.ai partnered with Analogic to fuse AI analytics with CT imaging for airports.
• May 2025: Leidos and Saudi Arabia’s National Security Services Company signed an MoU to modernize kingdom-wide screening infrastructure.
• March 2025: OSI Systems landed a USD 76 million order for CT and trace units at a major international airport.
• March 2025: Evolv Technology announced 92% contract-renewal adherence, underscoring customer stickiness.
• February 2025: Leidos teamed with SeeTrue to embed AI object-recognition into its checkpoint portfolio.
• January 2025: Leidos secured an eight-year USD 2.6 billion TSA sustainment deal covering 12,000 units.
• January 2025: OSI Systems booked USD 184 million in mixed aviation and cargo orders.
• January 2025: Smiths Detection deepened its partnership with Fukuoka International Airport on CT deployments.