They did, but short of CMs rummaging through bags and a pat down for every guest they'll still be pretty easy to sneak in.
And a sign that says "yes I own a selfie stick"
CMs don't stick their hands in bags. They ask the guest to open the bag and use a flashlight to look in. They may pat the outside of the bag or ask the guest to remove something off the top. They have gotten more consistent about asking quests to open pockets on bags, but it's just to look with a flashlight. A few months ago I saw a guest walk right through with a selfie stick in his back pocket. The CM never turned around once he passed her, just look straight ahead at the next guest. Had he gone to the metal detector the CSC employee probably would have noticed it. But there are plastic selfie sticks that could easily hide under loose clothing, or go unnoticed at the bottom of a backpack. I really doubt that it was used for the first time at 5pm on Screamin. Part of the problem is they need more security in the parks to actually confront guests in the parks when they pull out a selfie stick in front of the castle or tear through crowds with a kid on their lap, operating an ECV with one hand and a phone with the other or waving around a lightsaber and smacking people in the walkway near Astro Orbitor or changing diapers on tables at Pinocchio's.
There's just as much risk of someone losing their grip on a cell phone or camera held in their hand on a coaster, unfortunately. I probably would comment to a CM if I saw a selfie stick in the park, but it would just be a passing comment and I wouldn't expect them to do anything about it. When I saw a diaper being changed on a table at Gibson Girl I said something to a CM and he just shrugged. Last month a guy blew by a CM at bag check on his ECV and she stepped towards me and stage whispered, "That's not a walking pace..." and I sort of thought, "Then DO SOMETHING about it!" I will also often make a comment about really egregious line cutters to the CMs loading rides. Not because I think they're going to kick the line cutters out, but because it's a negative experience and I have the foolish hope that if they hear it enough then the policy on line cutting might change.
This actually came up when I was there last month. We were in DCA interacting with a couple of the street characters (the lady with the fake dog and one other - do they have names?). A guest came up and asked to take a photo with them and brought out a selfie stick, so they started mock-scolding and asking how she snuck it in. The guest looked confused and didn't seem to know about the ban, so they stopped scolding her and took the photo. There were no other obvious CM's around. After we left we were wondering what the in-character CM's are supposed to do in that situation (if they see a selfie stick or even dangerous rule-breaking). They're supposed to stay in character and generally be fun so I wouldn't expect them to confiscate it, but can they subtly call security to the area?
