The Most Magical Place on Earth has started scanning the fingers of three-year-olds in an effort to prevent ticket fraud, because you can never be too careful about tiny babies that have only just started communicating properly.
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The Orlando Sentinel reports that children between the ages of three and nine will now have their fingers scanned when they enter Walt Disney World and its theme parks, a practice already in use for guests 10 and older.
A Disney spokesperson told WESH.com that the new policy, which apparently went into effect in August, “ensures a seamless entry experience for our guests, helps protect guests from someone else using their ticket and reduces ticket fraud”. Previously, there were no safeguards in place to prevent ticket swapping between kids under 10.
It doesn’t appear that the policy is mandatory — according to the Sentinel, parents can use their own fingers in place of their children’s, and WESH.com notes that people who don’t want Disney to scan their digits can “visit guest relations”.
The AP reports that Disney’s scanner use has been in place for over a decade. It supposedly uses something called “finger geometry”, or “pictures of several points on people’s fingers”.
Between this and the park’s exploration of “foot tracking” — taking photos of guests’ feet in order to “customise” the park experience — Disney World is sure on track for its transformation into a dystopian wonderland.