Magicbands & Fingerprints?

[Lynn CC]

I was just reading a trip report and they mentioned they scanned their magicband and fingerprint on the way into MK. Do we have to get our fingerprints logged in the system somehow before we go to the parks?

 

[StacyStrong]

I was just reading a trip report and they mentioned they scanned their magicband and fingerprint on the way into MK. Do we have to get our fingerprints logged in the system somehow before we go to the parks?

They do it when you first enter the park. You don't have to do anything ahead of time.

 

[StacyStrong]

It's like a phone unlock key basically so people don't steal magic bands and try to use someone else's tickets

 

[Mal6586]

When you go through any tapstile, you touch your band then fingerprint scan. So you’ll need to remember which finger you used and scan that same finger each time you enter a park. It’s to keep people from sharing tickets, but there’s no special pre-entering process. Whichever finger you scan the first time you go through a tapstile is your identifier for the remainder of the ticket life.

 

[jennc27]

The first time we entered a park they had us scan our Magic Band then our fingerprint. Just remember which finger you use. All four parks we had to use both. If you use the wrong finger then they had someone with a tablet come over and take your photo and reset your fingerprint.

 

[Alesia]

Just to head off any paranoia: they don't store your finger print, it's a biometric scan.

 

[nutshell]

My wife has thin and shallow fingerprints. Biometrics don’t always work for her. What wil happen at the turnstiles if her fingerprints don’t work?

 

[bumbershoot]

My wife has thin and shallow fingerprints. Biometrics don’t always work for her. What wil happen at the turnstiles if her fingerprints don’t work?

She’ll show ID.

 

[gap2368]

My wife has thin and shallow fingerprints. Biometrics don’t always work for her. What wil happen at the turnstiles if her fingerprints don’t work?

You have to try 3 times if after the 3 times it does not work the CM will raise there hand and a GR CM will come over they will tap your band with there Ipad ask to see your ID and take your picture, if it happens again that trip ( you have to try it 3 times the CM will raise there hand the GR CM will come over) they will tap your MB and this time your picture will be up and they will let you in. the thing does not like my fingerprint and this happens a lot for me no big deal

 

[rwdavis2]

I was just reading a trip report and they mentioned they scanned their magicband and fingerprint on the way into MK. Do we have to get our fingerprints logged in the system somehow before we go to the parks?

Just curious, you haven't been to WDW in 10+ years? They have been doing the finger scan for at least that long.

 

[samsonjs]

The picture taking was odd for us. My 5yo always had a problem getting his finger to scan every time. Then they called someone over and said smile to him and took his picture. I had no clue they even did it until after it was done, nobody explained it to us. I just thought it was odd they took a picture of a child without even telling or asking the parents. I would have approved but usually you think they would say "parents, we need to take his photo to attach to his band. Is that ok?"

 

[AngiTN]

The fingerprint scan has been going on for ages, the only recent change is they now scan for adults and children.

To those that have issues with it, especially children (and often adults with small hands), here's a tip. The frequent issue with children (and adults with small hands) is their fingers are too small and they don't fully fill the scanner area so each time they place it on the scanner it is just different enough it causes the scan to be just different enough to return an error. Adults and people with larger hands normally fill the scanner area so it is the same each time and this isn't an issue as often. Have your children, or anyone with smaller fingers, put the finger on the scanner so the tip is touching the top each time. This should help the scan be the same, or close enough to the same, to reduce the number of errors. I've been using this technique with DGD and she never has errors when we go in the parks.

It's not a fix 100% of the time but it does help a lot.

 

[AngiTN]

It's like a phone unlock key basically so people don't steal magic bands and try to use someone else's tickets

Comparing it to a phone unlock is a very good comparison. They aren't fingerprint readings either.

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

The fingerprint scan has been going on for ages, the only recent change is they now scan for adults and children.

To those that have issues with it, especially children (and often adults with small hands), here's a tip. The frequent issue with children (and adults with small hands) is their fingers are too small and they don't fully fill the scanner area so each time they place it on the scanner it is just different enough it causes the scan to be just different enough to return an error. Adults and people with larger hands normally fill the scanner area so it is the same each time and this isn't an issue as often. Have your children, or anyone with smaller fingers, put the finger on the scanner so the tip is touching the top each time. This should help the scan be the same, or close enough to the same, to reduce the number of errors. I've been using this technique with DGD and she never has errors when we go in the parks.

It's not a fix 100% of the time but it does help a lot.

You can also have then use their thumb which is a little bit bigger and sometimes enough to alleviate the problem.

We also had CMs suggest using an adult's finger print with DS's ticket the first time went through the last two years but then that adult always has to be present whenever the child goes into a park. That would not have worked well for us since we switched off taking him back to the resort for naps and occasionally arrive at different times (big sis wanted to do JTA and he didn't). Just giving people a heads up so they can think through the cost/benefit of that option before being asked about it.

 

[Shaun176]

The picture taking was odd for us. My 5yo always had a problem getting his finger to scan every time. Then they called someone over and said smile to him and took his picture. I had no clue they even did it until after it was done, nobody explained it to us. I just thought it was odd they took a picture of a child without even telling or asking the parents. I would have approved but usually you think they would say "parents, we need to take his photo to attach to his band. Is that ok?"

You consent to being photographed in the fine print when you purchase your tickets and on signs while walking up.

 

[The Foolish Mortal]

Just to head off any paranoia: they don't store your finger print, it's a biometric scan.

I don't know. I've been watching Westworld this season ......

 

[drwadadli]

I was just reading a trip report and they mentioned they scanned their magicband and fingerprint on the way into MK. Do we have to get our fingerprints logged in the system somehow before we go to the parks?

They have been doing this for a few years now. It is a biometric scan of your finger and it is paired with your MagicBand. The biometric scan never works for my wife's finger so at the first park we enter for every trip, she does them that and she shows her I.D. They match her I.D. with her MagicBand and that allows her to enter. Basically, it is to make sure that the person using the MagicBand is you. The MagicBands have names on them and the match the band to the perosn via the biometric scan. Most theme parks have been doing this for at least the past 15 years or so.

 

[loves to dive]

Another hint to doing the finger scan is don't bear down real hard, just place it lightly on the scanner. I have small hands and something to do with the heat of my hands so those things don't work well with me (they have one at the safety deposit box at the bank as well). I always make sure my tip of my finger is at the top of the scanner and just barely put it down.

 

[rdaky]

My 8 year old had issues with her fingerprint multiple times. They took her photo at least 3 different times, and also asked her for her name, her age, birthday, and who she was with and their names. I'd imagine that people have abused the system and shared bands, but it was a bit nuts how many times we had to be stopped and wait for someone with the tablet to fix it.

 

[AngiTN]

My 8 year old had issues with her fingerprint multiple times. They took her photo at least 3 different times, and also asked her for her name, her age, birthday, and who she was with and their names. I'd imagine that people have abused the system and shared bands, but it was a bit nuts how many times we had to be stopped and wait for someone with the tablet to fix it.

Yeah, rampant sharing of kids passes is why they implemented the scan for children. I guess it's been a real problem with locals. 2, 3 families with same, or similar numbers of kids split the cost of passes for the children and then shared them when going to the parks. Could really add up if you had several kids.