I’m in a bit of a bind. I have to get TSA PreCheck, but I really don’t want to give up my biometric data to the government. I’ve read that TSA PreCheck requires my fingerprints and possibly my photo (it’s unclear). Interesting, though, is that when you’re enrolled in PreCheck you do not get fingerprinted when passing through the airport.
So, I plan to fill in my fingerprints with superglue when I sign up for PreCheck. Weak fingerprints are a condition that affect a lot of people – construction and farm workers, chemo patients, or some people just have it genetically – so I don’t think it will be too weird if my fingerprints don’t show up well in the scan. From what I’ve read (FlyerTalk, Washington Post) you can still get PreCheck even if you have weak fingerprints. And, since they don’t check my fingerprints at the airport, I’m not worried about ever having to match this scan.
My face is effectively a lost cause at this point, so I’m not gonna sweat that one.
My questions.
- Is there any reason my fingerprint plan won’t work?
- The PreCheck sign-up process is run by private companies (Idemia, Telos, Clear) and I can choose which one to use. I am going to rule out Clear. Is there any advantage between using Idemia or Telos?
- Is there anything else I should know before signing up?
EDIT: Wow, these replies are so useless, I had to check to make sure I wasn’t on reddit!
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It seems like getting caught having tried to obscure your fingerprints would be bad. How does one fill them in without it looking like you have a mess of glue on your fingers? Is there some technique for making it smooth so that you don’t produce prints that look obviously messed with?
They definitely want your photo. They will photograph / scan your face everytime you fly.
This is already the case.
A simple layer of superglue.
Have you ever applied a layer of paint, finish, or glue to something? Getting a smooth, uniform layer of a coating is not a no-brainer. I would expect uneveness, brush marks, etc.
It’s really funny to see everyone here fish for reasons this can’t work
Why is that funny? If you want something to work and there are bad consequences to it not working, fishing for reasons it might not work is exactly what you need to do.
You can opt out of TSA facial recognition and CBP facial recognition
Bear in mind that many modern fingerprint readers can work through even a latex glove, defeating non-destructive attempts to obscure fingerprints.
Also, a wet, wrinkly fingerprint is usually not recognized unless it is itself also enrolled on a fingerprint reader. Perhaps too anecdotal and conspicuous, but I’ll throw it out there too.