Cris L

Is there any way to avoid the face scanning at LGW?

I dislike supplying this data to any private organisation.

I'd object less if ALL departures require this, but as it's only domestic UK...

Lioneye

Your face is data?

Flyingturkey

Easy fix

KARFA

Domestic and JER flights all require the facial recognition precisely because BA do not require you have ID or a passport for a domestic flight.. No getting around it.

Not sure what you think LGW may do with your face picture btw?

Scots_Al

Drive. Take the bus.

Or get a grip / hand yourself in.

Fraser

Since you don't have to fly (domestically) under your true name do you also fly using an alias?
Does you alias have a BAEC account?
Is that BAEC account registered to a PO Box?
I'm curious how buy your tickets? Untraceable bearer bonds?

Cris L

I'm always happy to supply ID, as I pretty much always have ID on me. Government issued ID. I just don't see why I must give photos to LGW!

Lioneye

Are you saying his name might not be Cris L?

Lioneye

Burka?

corporate-wage-slave

You can simply use another airport. But there are strict controls on this, the data is automatically deleted after 24 hours. GAL can't do anything but use the data for passenger reconciliation purposes or if the police make a request for it within the time frame (which is extremely rare).

If you want a perspective as to how useless masses of photographic data are: say someone's data gets detached from the boarding pass thanks to some IT glitch, in theory by checking the time-stamps on the photos they can locate the photo (and thereby let them travel). If the person cannot remember exactly which channel they used and is only vaguely aware of the precise time they went through, typically GAL staff will give up on that approach - there are so many images that it becomes impossible to resolve that way. They then use other identity and questioning approaches to allow boarding.

KARFA

Because you don't require ID to travel on a domestic flight but you mix with transit passengers so there needs to be a check the person boarding is the person who came through security. The arrangement is the same at T5 and T2 at LHR, and T3 at MAN.

I am quite pleased we live in a country where the le doesn't require you to show ID to travel domestically

Skipcool3

When there were dedicated domestics facial recognition was not necessary. The push came from the airports wanting common areas and for the ££ in the pockets of the domestic passengers. I miss the old domestic gates at Gatwick where I could turn up 3 0 mins before and easily get my domestic flight to LBA PLH NQY MAN ABZ EDI GLA.
The photo recognition was required in case I gave my boarding pass to a transit passenger who was ticketed (for example) Accra - LGW - USA and had no right of entry to the UK or had not been seen by immigration on arrival.

Cris L

Interesting thought! Might try as M.Mouse next time.

Not yet

Yes

Prepaid Debit Card usually, that doesn't have my name on it!

Fitch

Well I hope you're as scrupulous with your IT OpSec or you've already been doxed baby

flatlander

While you're quite correct that the airports wanted the money, shops and amenities also can't exist without enough people to pay their way. Anyone flying from AMS on a Schengen flights from the cheap (M) gates will experience what an airport does if only a few passengers fly to one class of destination: the only thing past security at these gates is a small coffee and snack stand. That's what domestic-only gate areas would be like at LGW. I suspect plenty of people would prefer to have their photo taken than travel like that.

Meanwhile, I suspect that if LGW wants to take a photo of any customer, they won't find it hard. Personally I would put the cameras pointed at the security boarding card scan point and ensure the video time code was synchronised with the computer running the boarding scan readers. They don't need to try to misuse the (tightly controlled) boarding biometrics.