Re: Fingerprinting annoyance

[tcmay@got.net (Timothy C. May)]

At 6:26 PM 5/13/96, Mark O. Aldrich wrote:
>On Mon, 13 May 1996, Senator Exon wrote:
>
><snip>
>> i can fill out and manipulate the card myself i just need a
>> working method.
>> is there no privacy advocate who can help me?
>>
>
>I think most privacy advocates would advise, "Refuse to submit."  It
>sounds like you're looking for more of a hack on the fingerprinting process.

And if you are working for me, and I ask for a fingerprint, and you refuse
or "smear" the results (repeatedly, as the first smearing I may just take
as your token protest and have you printed again), you'll be out the door
by the end of the day.

(Personally, I've never worked for a company which demands fingerprints,
but I've worked for companies which demanded ID badges and signatures, and
these are effectively as intrusive. And I suspect that my former employers
are now using thumbprints, and maybe full prints.)

What one "doesn't like" and considers an "invasion of privacy" varies from
person to person. Some people think having their picture taken is a
stealing of their soul. Others fear nefarious things will be done with the
DNA from their blood samples.

Trying to convince a company that photo ID badges and fingerprints are Bad
Things is perhaps admirable, just realize that in a free society that
employer is under no obligation to hire someone who refuses to go along
with the company's security policies. (This relates to the "civil rights"
thread.)


>of like a key certificate.  If you really can dork the card, have ten
>different people volunteer one print each.  There's no way that they'll
>ever be able to use that as evidence in a court or for any other purpose,
>either.

A stupid idea. As the employer, I wouldn't have to prove it a court of
law...suspicion alone that some of my employees were fucking up a security
system might be enough for me to either a. promote them to the Tiger Team,
or b. fire their asses.

(I just can't understand where this pervasive meme is coming from here on
this list, the notion that employers are severely limited in what they can
do to employees unless they can "prove it in court. Like it or not, most
employees in the United States are still employed "at will," and are not
covered by employment contracts such as some executives and the like get.)

>If you're forced to do this in person with a tech, you can continuously
>"fight" the grip they have on your hand and smudge the card.  However,

Sure. It makes it easy for the employer to simply say "Next candidate."


--Tim May

Boycott "Big Brother Inside" software!
We got computers, we're tapping phone lines, we know that that ain't allowed.
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