[cyclonus743]

So my players are about to embark on a suborbital.  Between the group they are have a fair amount of illegal cyberware.  Any ideas on how one should handle this situation?  Other than hefty bribes.

[Kot]

Find someone who can get them through without a security check. Hacking the system, diplomatic privileges, that kind of stuff. Or find a job that will get them through a corporate territory.

[Nomad Zophiel]

Depends on what kind of cyberware. Anything where the base unit isn't F or R availability will be fine. So, for example, a cyberarm, cybereye or datajack won't be a problem. Then it just depends on what they have that could be troublesome. Internal commlinks will probably get by even if they're full of hacker software. For outright weapons or other iffy gear, they may want to wear clothing with an MAD scramble layer in it. Forget the exact reference but I think its in Arsenal. Basically it causes anything on that limb to not show up.

[Dead Monky]

Whatever you do, make sure your licenses are top notch and up to date.  Just in case.

But there are scramblers and other bits of gear that can be used (I think most of them are in Arsenal, Unwired, and Runner's Companion).  But you'd have to be careful.  Really careful.  If all the scanners and bits of security equipment go on the fritz they'll probably figure something is amiss and lock the place down.

EDIT
Fixed an omission.

[Tagz]

Me, if they don't think to conceal or bribe or in some way bypass the security I'd use it as an adventure seed.

Anyone caught gets brought into separate security rooms and have different guys ask them questions, then suddenly a man in a black suit walks in, gives the guard a look, shows him some papers.  The security guard turns white and leaves quietly.

The man in the black suit needs a little favor done at your destination.

Just add details that work for your current game and stir for one hour.

[Bradd]

The DotA missions suggest that it's much easier to get illegal/restricted stuff through security if you present it as something innocent. For example, bone lacing and cyberlimbs can be a problem if you try to pass them off as licensed military hardware. However, if your fake "license" is an affidavit from a doctor detailing treatment your degenerative bone and muscle disease, you're a lot more likely to breeze through security. Likewise, taking a magical katana and wakizashi across an international border can be tricky if you try a license to wield them, but it's much easier if you present the credentials of a museum curator transporting valuable historical artifacts. Our team gunbunny has the cover story of being an Ares gunsmith, which has helped him out when he "accidentally" left a firing pin in his pocket.

Short version is: Have a good cover story, ideally one that has nothing to do with you being a shadowrunner.

[Nomad Zophiel]

Those aren't cyberspurs, officer. They're for my carpal tunnel.

[Bradd]

Exactly!

[Chaemera]

Also, remember that competence isn't a requirement to work airport security. Me, I say mix together most of the ideas you've seen here, from using it as a plot device, to reminding the players of the effectiveness of the Con skill.

As to MAD disruptors making the MAD scanners appear to malfunction, I would have to imagine that it's more just a matter of blocking the MAD Scanner's waveform. Just like the lead-lined apron your dentist gives you when he's x-raying your mouth. (Notice he never gives you a lead lined helmet? That's just cause he hates you.)

Of course, if you went ahead and got that one legal implant with the same ident that you made your flight reservations, or a visible one like a cyberarm, and then cover it with MAD scrambling materials, they're probably gonna have a chance to know something's up. This is the 6th world, I'd be surprised if they don't have access to your legit medical records when you go travelling. Heck, probably biometric scanners on the way in running facial and retinal matching routines on the crowd, looking for multiple hits (ie, you have fake IDs in their system) and Most Wanted hits. But, now we're back at the "too much info is as bad as too little", because they have to correlate what they know into actionable info and have boots on the ground to act on it.

[Nomad Zophiel]

I have to look it up for the specifics, but the Anti-MAD coating was described as creating a blind spot. It doesn't so much cause the whole thing to fail as one limb to show no metal.

[Bradd]

I like to include incompetent, bored, sympathetic, overworked, confused, greedy, and gullible officials in my game. It gives players material to work with when they need to pull a con or cover a mistake, it's realistic, it's funny sometimes, and I think it's appropriate to the setting. Usually I let the dice guide me. For example, if I roll a few ties in a row for security checks ("Please verify ID") then a guard is likely to let it slide ("Stupid machine is acting up again, sorry for the delay"). Of course, other times the situation looks a lot bleaker. Our gunbunny started developing his cover ID after an ugly incident where several airport guards and their superiors were about to detain him.

[Morg]

if you want the PCs to get to the destination because you need them to for your story and they didn't take the right precautions to get past the MADD + Chem sensors + Facial Recognition systems have the alarms go crazy then get the security guard check his link turn the alarms off and just wave them through then send one of the runners an IM "Karmic Awards Await" offering a link to download a program called Exchange

[Kontact]

I like using wifi-negating paint to do a disguise test to foil millimeter wave scanners.
MAD detectors will still show metal, but if they scan you to see what it is, the shading from the wifi-paint will keep it from auto-matching with the database.

[The Cat]

Depending on just how difficult of a world we're playing in, I've seen this go down in three basic ways.

Big Happy Family Worlds: Corps share lots of data fairly freely.  They keep secrets, sure, but "common" data like criminal, personnel and medical files are easily accessible.  These are nightmare worlds for Runners, since they can't play off Corp A against Corp B when it comes to establishing credentials, such data is freely available with the touch of a few keys.

Modern World Different Reasons: Corps share some information freely, but it's typically incomplete thanks to the corp's natural need for secrecy and sometimes outright stubbornness to give away information.  There work a lot like it is today for different reasons.  The local cops will have your criminal record, but not your medical ones and the hospital won't have a clue you're wanted in 5 states.  Corp A may be willing to share information on personnel files, but not medical, or give up half your medical records without having your name attached to it.

Like I'd Tell You Worlds:  Corps won't give up anything but scant information on anything to each other and that's only every fifth thursday of a month ending in "Q."  If your ID has medical information from the Azzies and the cops are KE the odds of them being able to actually verify it are so remote you'll be old a grey before the Azzies even bother to reply with "we don't share that sort of thing."  When it comes to ID and security checks, these are runner paradises.

In any of the worlds, all you really need to get through a security check is a good reason to have what you have, it's just a matter of how good it has to be since the databases get smaller and smaller from world to world.  In the first, you'd need a set of top notch fakes from several places, in the last, you'd just need two or three fair ones indicating you work for different corporations and just do a little homework on who own the security firm you're against.