ID scanning at clubs?

We all hate it. IF two clubs are even vaguely close in quality, I'll always pick the club that doesn't ID scan, but in some areas all the clubs do it (or at least all the ones worth going to) so it's either that or don't go SCing. Increasingly, I'm fine not SCing and getting my rocks off some other way.

The clubs will say that they do it so they can identify you if you cause problems, skip out on your bill, etc. Which is valid. I just don't trust them with my information, assurance that "we don't keep your info past tonight" notwithstanding.

I do occasionally go to ID scanning clubs, but seek to avoid

The odd thing is that I have and do party in pasco county FL and I’ve never encountered it there. If you look over thirty they don’t even bother asking to glance at it. The only other place I’ve encountered the same thing was at Soft-Tails in Deland FL.

I do it when I have to. Scanning your ID gives them no additional info than what is visible on your ID, but that has name, DOB, address and your DL number, more than enough for identity theft if that’s what you’re worried about.

I hate that ID scanning shit. I can totally understand the potential need for scanning in some cases, or at least the rationale behind why a club might want to do so. The problem I have with it is that I've never, ever seen a club offer up, or even be able to produce on demand, a privacy policy, or anything similar to a privacy policy, stating what it is that they do with the information and how they protect it. No matter how much I might like the door attendant, I'm not just trusting them that they actually even KNOW what will happen to the information, let alone some kind of vague assurance that there's "nothing to worry about"...

TL;DR - HELL NO, THEY'RE NOT SCANNING MY ID WITHOUT A WRITTEN PRIVACY POLICY!

I hate it, but it's either go to a strip club where they scan your ID, or don't go at all and I go infrequently enough anymore that I just put up with it.

Because I always just wrap my cash around my license, the bouncer can always see it. I find making sure they see that it is a lot and then say directly to the money "back in the car boys were going to a place where you'll be more welcome", somehow dispenses with the need for a license. If it doesn't work, I go elsewhere, or home. I no longer go to Marios at night because of it. Me: Why do you need to scan my license? Door: It helps keep track of who is in here in case there's an emergency, like a fire, it would help. Me: You want to kill firefighters? Door: Why would you say that? Me: You don't keep track of who exits so your figures would show the firefighters there are people still in there, when they probably left 3 hours ago. When they go back in and die, you killed them. Door: Fuck you. Move along. Me: Bye terrible liar. Tell your boss that only a fucking moron would believe that story. By the time he got it I was down the stairs...

I'm seventy, so asking for ID from me is preposterous, if I'm asked for ID, I will show it but it will not leave my possession, if they tell me it needs to be scanned, I tell them absolutely not, out of all the times I've been asked to allow them to scan and I've refused , only once was I denied entry after a refusal, and I took that club off my rotation never have I gone back.

Like others, I avoid places that do it. It's not 100%, sometimes I'm out with friends and they want to go to a club that does it and I can't sell them on a better option so I go along. But it's maybe once a year that happens, if that. Most of my friends have become more privacy aware and they also don't want to give up their ID's for scanning.

When I stumble into a place that has it, I'll usually tell them I don't want it scanned. They usually insist, it's about 50/50 that they cave when I threaten to walk. They always seem very surprised when I walk, so I'm guessing not enough people do that to make it matter to them.

I genuinely doubt that the places scanning ID's are actively doing anything nefarious, like using your information to market to you, committing identify theft themselves, storing it for the purpose of blackmail, etc, etc. But, I'm nearly certain the companies that sell the scanners and operate the back end systems they send data to are completely inept and place little to no value on data security. That information is stored indefinitely and is easily accessible by bad actors, and used to augment other collections of data traded to similar bad actors.

There are a bunch of threads on this topic here.

The club's lawyers probably told them to do it, and the lawyers don't care if they lose business over it. A savvy business owner should care.

If enough customers refused it, the policy would have to be dropped. But most people are unconcerned about their privacy, and hand over their license like good North Koreans, because they believe they "have nothing to hide".

I always wonder how long they keep the scans in their systems.

It sucks, but I tolerate it when I need to. In some clubs in NYC or CT they will refuse you entry otherwise. Now sure maybe I should stand on principle and walk away, but after hiking out to some remote part of Queens I hate the thought of that trip being for nothing.

I turn around and leave when they try. I knew a guy who had his parents address on his ID since he was on the road a lot and only "home" about 1 week out of 10. His mother caused him lots of grief when he started getting offers from a club he had been to in the mail. Since my mother will sometimes stay with me and likes tidying up, I do not want to have the same thing happen to me.

Scan issue: if a cop (or liquor control narc) walks up and asks for the file of scanned IDs, do you think the club will defend its customers? No, I don't either. Could be police fishing for someone to bust for something. Definitely do not allow a scan if you have an outstanding warrant.

ID check issue: Hard to get employees to use good judgment, so some places have "ID everyone" rules, which is why we geezers get carded. But most places let managers OK someone without ID. So if lacking in ID, ask for manager's OK.

I would never allow my ID to be scanned unless it's at the DMV or something. At 58 no one would ever doubt that I'm old enough to enter a bar, so checking my ID seems creepy to me. I'd show it if I had to, but no way it's getting scanned. That said, I've never been asked for ID at a strip club. Well, maybe when I was a teenager, but I don't recall, and there was no scanning technology back then. My first driver license was a piece of paper without a picture. Lol.

Anyway, I don't go to the type of clubs where they would scan your ID. For me it's only filthy little dive bars. These places haven't upgraded their old tube televisions to flat screens yet, so won't be seeing scanners anytime soon.

@misterorange Once you show your ID and the bouncer holds it up to read it, your ID has been scanned. Technology is such today that cameras in the ceiling record the image of your ID. Kind of like the cameras at self service checkouts which monitor customers as they scan the bar code of items they are purchasing. So I was told by a bouncer at a well known RI strip club, which will remain nameless, as he looked at my ID.

Many years ago, I had a club take my address off my DL, and start mailing me fliers for the club. Only time I've had anything approaching a problem. What's the worst things that actually happened to anyone due to an ID scan? I don't buy into the "clubs with security measures are dangerous, cause the clubs where no bad people ever go don't need them" theory.

@WiseToo That's why I don't go to those kinds of places. Never will.

ID scans are wrong and I avoid those

The DMV has my social security number. (Something I believe is technically illegal due to federal law, but nevertheless.) So I assume that SSN is retrievable from the bar code on the license. It seems like they should make all SSNs public now, so institutions would be forced to stop using them for ID. But then I suppose they would go to retina scans or facial recognition.

And then you have people saying: "Yes, use facial recognition to get me through TSA faster as I never intend to do anything illegal or even slightly embarrassing. The eye in the sky is my friend!"

I still remember zi went to a club I had been to many times and I had a temporary license from a lost wallet. The door guy said hello and called me by my name but said Ali couldn’t enter because he couldn’t scan the temporary printed ID. The same guy had probably scanned my ID 50 times and zi, in my 40s. It’s crazy how inflexible some people can be.

ID's are scanned to help clubs prevent credit card charge backs, according to a company that provides scanning equipment. Charge backs seem to be a big problem in a tourist areas where a PL gets lap dancers and VIPs, charges them to his credit card and then claims he was never at the club. An ID scan has a date and time stamp which documents the PL was at the club.

idscan.net

Sometime the gubment required bars to scan: wcia.com

@WiseToo If the purpose of scanning IDs were to prevent C. C. fraud, then let them ask for the IDs of those that use a C. C. at the point of sale. No reason for blanket scanning of every patron, I’ll bet the vast majority of patrons in a strip club pay cash.

Yeah, maybe a part of the reason for scanning is to fight chargebacks, but it's definitely not THE reason.

25 hits it right on the nose 100% correct

The scanning auto detects that the ID is real and over age 21, thats part of it, but also its obviously also used to keep track of any troublesome customers or any notes on customers, and it also may even be used for sales data like seeing how old a customer is, what they like spending money on, what times of day are busiest etc.

The club itself may not be doing anything nefarious but the biggest concerns are whether low level workers like bouncers or dancers can access the ID scan info. Bouncers or dancers are more likely than a club owner or manager to actually use the info from ID scans for ID theft.
When you take into account the fact a ton of these bouncers and dancers have criminal records or are just desperate for money overall, they could potentially also use the ID scan info to rob someone