Purpose for finger scan?

[seashoreCM]

It has been said that a small group of tickets printed at the same time were linked together for finger scanning purposes, just in case family members got the tickets mixed up. This feature would probably not be available for tickets kept in a stack by a third party ticket agent and the stack got shuffled before your ticket order was filled.

 

[dburg30]

A couple of thoughts. 1) I would like to think that a member of our armed forces would not want to break the rules and use someone else' ticket 2) the fact that you 'pay it forward' means to me that you are a generous and considerate person. Don't spoil it by acting like you deserve special props for it. 3) the fact that you would spend the money anyway has no relation to obeying the rules.

now, to get off my soapbox and offer a suggestion... Call WDW guest services and explain that you are taking a friend of yours to WDW for 2 days and that he is a soldier who has just returned from duty. Ask if there are any special packages or things that WDW offers to make his visit 'extra magical'. They may have something, they may not. They may offer passes or they may not. However, I think the real point is that if you want to do something special for your friend, then find a way (legit way) to do it, especially if it means sacrifices on your behalf. After all, isn't that what your friend has done for all of us?

Perfect reply, and I agree 100%

I am just wondering ------ If he used this person's Ap and did the finger scan ....... Does it Buzz or a light flashes - What happens ----- ???

On the back side it will say something about bio not matching

You are going to get slammed by the "holier than thou's" on this board.

Sometimes they don't even scan your finger - they just let you in with the ticket. They can cancel the AP though. When are you going and what is the military rate for a ticket? I will donate 1 day for him. If you PM me your address with the cost, I will mail you a check.

I dont think anyone was slamming the person! They asked why the finger scan (not fingerpring scan, it doesnt keep your fingerprint on file). Folks told them why they do it, and also suggested reasons not to 'cheapen' the trip or the reason for it. Yes, I know it sounds like people preaching, but is it worth getting 86'd from the park or getting the AP revoked or a person in the military? I'm 100% for the idea the PP had about call and be very candid about the reason for the trip, and see what happens.

Ok - I'm all for not reselling tickets etc. But I've always wondered about the whole thing.

DH and I often do single overnight WDW visits while we're in Florida in the spring and fall. And then every second year we do a more extended stay.

We purchase 10-day park hoppers (not AP) and use them on various visits until they're expended. We keep them in a file at home and have no idea which one really belongs to DH and which is mine. We've never been stopped at the finger scan. But surely we haven't pulled those tickets out of storage several times and managed 100% to end up with each of us having the correct ticket???

LOL We're leaving for WDW on Monday. Now that I've posted this our luck will run out and we'll get stopped at the turnstyle!

They were probably either bought together or were on a room reservation at some point. They will 'link' tickets together in a pack so that you dont have to worry about 8 different family members keeping track. So if one person bought all 8 ticks from WDW or had a room, they will basically 'share' the finger scan information between those tickets.

 

[Deb & Bill]

You are going to get slammed by the "holier than thou's" on this board.....

Why is it that those who think there is nothing wrong with cheating Disney will call the people who follow the rules "holier than thou"? I've never understood that one.

OP, you have been given several good suggestions and your heart was in the right place, but your means to accomplish it weren't.

 

[Allison]

Why is it that those who think there is nothing wrong with cheating Disney will call the people who follow the rules "holier than thou"? I've never understood that one.

OP, you have been given several good suggestions and your heart was in the right place, but your means to accomplish it weren't.

Ditto.

 

[PixieDust32]

The finger scan works might not be working very well because on our last trip (Oct 08) i gave my dd's their annual pass wrong, I put it in each others passholder envelope by mistake and we went to the parks did the finger scan and nothing happened, we realized the error when one of my dd looked at the back of her ticket and it was her sister's ticket on our last day!

 

[TDC Nala]

I am just wondering ------ If he used this person's Ap and did the finger scan ....... Does it Buzz or a light flashes - What happens ----- ???

What should happen is the ticket machine does not accept the ticket, and the gate attendant would then check the ID of the ticket holder and make sure it matches up to the ticket.

I have been told that my AP was probably demagnetized and sent to Guest Services to have it replaced. They won't replace the ticket without an ID.

Don't active duty military get some discounts on tickets?

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

The military member can buy a discounted ticket onsite at Shades of Green (they basically save the cost of the sales tax) or at an MWR office on base. I highly doubt Disney would do anything else but it certainly won't hurt to call and ask.

Sea World does offer FREE admission to active duty military members and their dependents. Your friend could most likely get you and him in for free.

Have a great trip!

Oh and about the finger scan - we just got back and my FIL accidentally put the wrong finger on the scanner and he was not able to go thru the turnstile until he put in the ticket again and put the correct finger on the scanner.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

The following is from the Everything About WDW Tickets locked sticky in this forum:

The finger scans are used to tie a person to a particular ticket. This will work to prevent people switching or selling tickets. It also eliminates the need for hand stamps for reentry to a park or hopping between parks.

First of all, Child (Age 3-9) and certain other tickets, such as the YES Program, do not take scans and will unlock the turnstile if they are valid for the park.

The first time a ticket is used it will read the fingerprint and select an area about 1/4 inch by 1/8 inch and analyze that area.

It will then apply a mathematical algorithm to that reading, convert it to a numeric string, and store that string of numbers tied to the serial number of the ticket in the Automated Ticketing System (ATS) computer.

On subsequent entries ATS will look for that particular string on the ticket. If it finds it, the turnstile will unlock and a green light will come on.

If ATS cannot find that string, a message will show up of "identification fails". At that point the greeter will have several options; one of these is to tell ATS to replace the numeric string tied to the ticket with a new once based on the most recent scan.

If MYW tickets were purchased at WDW directly from ATS in one transaction they may be linked together, in which case the people can switch the tickets, but don’t count on this working.

And there are times when the lines are very long and management may decide to turn off the scanners for a while, in which case as long as the ticket is valid for that park it will be accepted without a scan.

If a person does not want to have their finger scanned, as an alternative they may present a photo ID where the name matches the name printed on the ticket. If it is a Florida Resident Ticket or an Annual Pass the name will automatically be printed on the ticket. If the name is not preprinted on the ticket, the ticket owner should print their name (in ink) legibly in the space provided on the ticket.

Note that this is not a full fingerprint record, and the partial print still has about a one in a thousand chance of being duplicated.

If an AP scan fails it is normal to ask for a photo ID. If the user does not have an ID that matches the name printed on the ticket the host at the turnstile will hold onto the ticket and very possibly call Security.

At the very least the person will be asked to purchase a new ticket and the ticket they had will be cancelled. It is possible for the Orange County Sheriff's Office to get involved if there is a possiblity that the ticket was stolen. And if it was loan out (with permission) more than likely the AP will be revoked and notes in the system to prevent reissue.

In other words, it is not a good idea.

 

[momofbcs]

SO they dont store the prints from past visits? I have a different name than I did at my last trip 3 years ago. Shouldnt be a problem?

 

[Robo]

SO they dont store the prints from past visits?

Yes, they do.

I have a different name than I did at my last trip 3 years ago. Shouldnt be a problem?

Shouldn't be.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

SO they dont store the prints from past visits? I have a different name than I did at my last trip 3 years ago. Shouldnt be a problem?

The algorithm stored (not an actual fingerprint; the fingerprint cannot be recovered from the algorithm) is tied to a particular ticket. When a ticket is completely used, or has expired, the algorithm will be removed automatically by the system in 30 days.

The print is never stored by individual, it is stored based on the ticket serial number.

 

[cjb71870]

From "your" AP sleeve, "The owners of WDW reserve the right to revoke the Annual Pass, if it is presented for admission by anyone other than the Passholder of record...."