Walt Disney World Scanning Kids’ Fingers to Prevent Fraud

ORLANDO, FL — Visitors to the Magic Kingdom and other Walt Disney parks in Florida may notice a change at the front gate. Kids ages 3 to 9 are now being asked to have their fingers scanned like adults and older kids when they enter Walt Disney World parks in the Orlando area.

The new policy was put in place in August, according to a Walt Disney World spokeswoman. The policy is meant to ensure seamless entry for guests while also protecting guests from someone else using their tickets, the park explained in an email.

Parents who aren’t keen on having their kids’ fingers scanned will find there are a few loopholes built into the policy. Guests can serve as proxies for the children, having their fingers scanned instead. Parents who don't wish to participate in the scanning at all are asked to report to the guest relations office at the park instead.

Disney World began using scanners more than 10 years ago to help prevent ticket theft and clamp down on the practice of sharing tickets, the Orlando Sentinel reported. The technology uses “finger geometry,” which takes pictures of several points on people’s fingers to verify a ticketholder’s identity, the paper reported.

Prior to the policy change for kids ages 3 to 9, it was relatively easy to transfer kids’ tickets because they lacked identity verification, the paper noted.

A one-day ticket to the Magic Kingdom now costs $105 for ages 10 and up for Florida residents. Annual passes for Florida residents, ages 3 and up, start at $259 for weekday select passes and go up to $729 for platinum passes that include all four Walt Disney World theme parks.

For more information about pricing and tickets, visit Walt Disney World online.

Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World