If you want to see the absolute limits of the human psyche tested, go to an airport. A lawless land where 6am drinking doesn’t draw eyebrow raises, no one bats an eyelash at $6 water, and time doesn’t exist, the airport is a battleground prejudiced to none.
Seasoned travelers know the deal as soon as they step into the building: You don’t keep up the line when checking in. You make sure your bag isn’t overweight. And you hustle at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint—lest you incur the wrath of an agent who’s had just one too many entitled passengers that day.
You aren’t always spared from the latter, however, no matter how well you think you know the rules. This is what one woman found out the hard way after a TSA agent assaulted her eardrums for trying to be proactive.
What Did This TSA Agent Do?
In a viral clip, comedian and TikToker Elle Orlando (@_elleorlando_) shared the “really bad interaction” she had with a TSA agent at Chicago’s O’Hare airport. To make matters worse, it was 4am. This meant Orlando’s brain was like “a dolphin’s”—half asleep, half awake.
Still, Orlando—like a good little traveler—made sure to pull out her laptop from her bag. You know, per the hundreds of times TSA agents and announcements have told travelers to do. Apparently, this was the wrong move. Orlando says as she pulls out her laptop, an “ogre” of a woman starts screaming at her.
“‘Did I say to take your computer out of your bag?’” Orlando says the agent screamed.
“Who are you to yell [at me]?” Orlando shares. “I’m just doing what we were taught. Now you change the rules. I didn’t know the rules had changed.”
The TikToker says she didn’t react, despite her eardrums having been “bursted” and put the laptop back in her bag.
A Bid For Connection?
Orlando says the TSA agent appeared regretful of her actions, so she tried to “connect” with the TikToker after.
“She says, ‘Hey, do you like Cheetos?’” Orlando recalls. At this point, the TikToker is still upset about being yelled at, so she says she got her “revenge.”
“I just pretended I had no idea what Cheetos were,” Orlando says. She says she proceeded to gaslight the agent that Cheetos were not a thing, as the agent got visibly more upset that Orlando didn’t know what she was talking about.
“If you’re gonna pretend like we’re on the ground at Vietnam War, and it’s the ‘70s, I’m gonna pretend like I don’t know what f—— Cheetos are,” Orlando concludes.
What Did Viewers Think Of Her ‘Revenge?’
While several users commended Orlando for “getting back” at the agent, the majority of viewers raged about TSA’s “arbitrary” rules.
“They’re inconsistent from place to place which is frustrating!” one top comment read. Another asked, “Okay but why are TSA always so mean [crying emoji.]”
“The rules are different everywhere! I prepare myself every time, and I get it wrong,” a third lamented.
Users shared their own personal experiences with TSA. “In Atlanta they have an announcement that says take your computer out of your bags, when you get to the agent they rudely tell you to keep your computer in your bags,” one shared.
Another person admitted they even thanked a TSA agent because they didn’t scream at them. They shared, “First time ever they were so kind to me!”
At least one person defended the employees, writing, “In their defense, they are way underpaid and very overworked, they deal with a——- every day and after government shutdown they aren’t even getting paid.”
Do You Need To Take Your Laptops Out For TSA?
Like Orlando, most travelers know they must put their laptops in a separate tray, akin to removing their shoes. On its website, TSA currently states that “you will be asked to remove personal electronic devices larger than a cell phone from your carry-on bag and place them into a bin.”
However, it appears that these rules may be revised in an official capacity. In July 2025, the shoe-removal policy was phased out of the screening process. This is because advanced technology will allow travelers to keep their shoes on, per the Department of Homeland Security. As more advancements in the screening process are made, the laptops and no-liquids rule could be rolled back in the near future, Travel Weekly reported. This could be why some airports require folks to take out their electronics while others do not.
The Customer Defends Herself
In an email to BroBible, Orlando says she’s never had an agent tell her to keep the laptop in her bag before.
She was also confused as to why the agent wanted to connect over Cheetos. She says, “It remains a mystery.”
She thinks it was her agent’s way of saying, “Hey, I’m sory I overreacted. that wasn’t cool… but why don’t we crack open a couple cheetos (on me) and forget this ever happened.”
Orlando says she proceeded to pretend she didn’t know what Cheetos were, “which was my special way of saying ‘fat chance lunch lady, expect me to seek revenge in every lifetime xo.’”
The creator also addressed the comments defending the agents.
“Some people have commented ‘they dont get paid enough.’ Okay then quit. get a new job,” she countered. “We are all in a recession babe and im a stand up comedian… I make 3 cents a year and you don’t see me accosting people.”
While she understands that people “hate working” and are struggling, Orlando tells them to “grow up.”
“If you hate your job and can’t conduct yourself in a respectful way to other humans then be an adult and quit,” she says.
Orlando concludes by inviting people to check her out on her comedy tour, where “no one has left deaf or sad.”
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for TSA pointed BroBible to its customer service page, where customers can “send a compliment or complaint.”