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UK bouncers checking Facebook to confirm I.D.

Written by James Delahunty @ 03 May 2012 8:54 User comments (4)

UK bouncers checking Facebook to confirm I.D. Facebook profiles serving as proof of identity.
The bouncers have reportedly asked people to show them their Facebook profiles on their smartphones if they suspect that a fake I.D. is being used.

"I kind of just logged onto it [Facebook] and showed him the screen and then he didn't question it any further," Charlotte Neal, 20, told BBC's Newsbeat. "When it happened the first time I didn't really think anything of it. Then I thought, 'Hang on, is this really how you're supposed to check how old I am?' But I was out and I wanted to get in the club so I just agreed."

The Newsbeat website also mentions other similar reports througout the UK. It brings up some questions about basic privacy rights, and how they must be balanced with ensuring that a minor does not trick his/her way into a nightclub using a fake ID card.

One doorman questioned by Newsbeat said that there is a fine of £5,000 for a bouncer who is found to have left an underage individual into a nightclub. "Why is it so wrong for people to have to prove the ID is actually them? If you're not doing anything wrong you shouldn't have a problem," he said.



A bar owner called Chris also told Newsbeat that checking phones with the consent of the individual is a more certain way to determine if a suspicious ID is actually real.

Campaign group Big Brother Watch is not impressed with the new practice. "Not only is it ridiculous from a security point of view, it's an affront to the basic rights of people to be able to live their lives in private," said the group's Nick Pickles.

"If the problem is that people haven't got good enough quality IDs, then let's make sure they do have good enough quality IDs. This shouldn't be an excuse for nightclubs to snoop and pry into people's private lives."

Tags: Facebook
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4 user comments

13.5.2012 21:15

create a fake account...and get in

24.5.2012 02:04

what happenes when someone with id doesnt have a smart phone or doesnt have fb???or when some 15year old with a fake id has a fb page saying hes 21.

34.5.2012 09:32

"Campaign group Big Brother Watch is not impressed with the new practice. "Not only is it ridiculous from a security point of view, it's an affront to the basic rights of people to be able to live their lives in private," said the group's Nick Pickles."

What an idiot. I dont see any more breach of personal details doing it this way, than showing other forms of ID. It's not as if the security dude is going to check the photo albums or timeline or anything. But if it's done often, people with just set up fake FB accounts.

And it's not an affront to peoples ability "to live their lives in private"... if they want to live their life in private, stay in private! Don't go to a club full of "the public" where entrance is a priviledge, not a right!

Anyway with a name like Nick Pickles what would you expect, haha, probably been bullied all his life so now he makes up for it by complaining about trivial matters as an adult.

44.5.2012 09:46

I see lots of £5,000 fines as bouncers discover how easy it is to create a fake FB profile with a fake age.

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