What if you tried to grab 1F instead of 5F? If that works, then people can give themselves guaranteed EUAs.

I wouldn't recommend that anyone try to cheat the system. I've alerted CO and as far as I know they'll be working on a fix. I'm just a lowly OnePass member and I plan on keeping those Elite seats clear for the people who earned them!

This would not work. If you recall on the seat map page, the first class cabin is a separate seat map. If you are purchasing a coach ticket, you will only see coach seats. Selecting 1F via javascript would not work.

I also highly doubt that the seatmap page totally relies on JavaScript. If the linked thread is the exploit the OP of this thread is talking about, I would be quite surprised (and disappointed in CO's software developers). It worked in the linked thread because the user *should* have been able to select that seat by business rules; the page just didn't recognize that he was elite because he was a NW elite. (i.e., it was a bug workaround, not an exploit, per se)

Yes you are correct--I tried to nab a FC seat in the coach seat map and this technique did not work.

After playing with it a bit it does appear that a seat selection just using the JavaScript exploit worked all the way through a reservation (of course I did not pay). But the site remembered my selection (so it was put into session) so I am a little disappointed in the developers, but not surprised. Exploits on client side code are easily found and used.

not sure if this is the same issue. i was making a reservation for me and my wife 3 days ago. i was using a certificate so i had to book separately. she is gold elite and i assumed i would have to call the elite line to get her in the emergency exit seat next to me, but when i tried to select 14F (738) for her it worked just fine. i was logged into her non plat OP account. i am wondering if the restriction is not working at this time....

const3, not the same issue at all - in fact, not even a bug. Golds are supposed to be able to select exit seating. (As are Plats; just not Silvers or non-elites.)

i thought it was just plats. i never really noticed. thanks.

All of those seats become available to anyone and everyone at the 24 hour online check in mark anyway. I guess that wouldn't apply if the route actually had enough elites pre-selecting seats but I wasn't seeing that happening... even now I'm not gold and still manage to snag an exit row at the 24 hour mark nearly every time.

Yeah, this is really a non-issue since Continental doesn't enforce the "elite" seats in any meaningful way like United does for example.

What I usually do now is try to put myself in the last open row in the "elite" seating area. So I still have a place to plug in my laptop, but hopefully when the computer fills in the stragglers from the front, I won't have anyone next to me.

I hope you have a different method than I do; I'll be some PO'd if you screw up my method

This is Really Bad....
 

I have a reservation for a travelling companion who is non-elite. I was planning to call and get them moved to the exit row with me, which I have done many times. The PNR was booked separate from mine. I was able to go to the CO website, log out of my account, access the travelling companion's PNR without being logged into any frequent flyer account, and change her seats to exit row aisle. This is for a flight over a month from now. A slight change was required in the javascript vs. what has been posted, but it is not hard to figure out.

Given how long it will likely take CO to fix this, maybe the moderators should delete this thread....

Likely because United is the only domesic airline that has actually created a premiun product worth protecting. UA has had E+ for some time now, I'm really surprised no one else has copied it yet. I would think CO would be the perfect one to try this.

I hope CO Insider or someone else from Continental is on this. As an EWR- based Gold, elite seating is one of the few benefits I get any more (since upgrades are virtually nonexistent for me).

your profile lists you as platinum. why do you need a method of tricking your way into elite seats?

i'll say the same thing i say about my posts on the AA board related to a huge hole in their upgrade process: the day an FTer beats me to a seat using one of these tricks, i want to buy that person a beer at the admirals club. (i know, that's a pretty hollow offer when y'all get free drinks in your clubs, but hey, it's what i've got these days... )

you've got an extra bonus on the CO board -- they really do see what's said here, and as a result, you'll get closer to having a truly fair system over time. i've posted numerous times on the AA board about a specific method of bypassing the upgrade list, and i doubt anyone at AA has seen any of it.... (and, fwiw, my initial post detailing a specific method of grabbing CO elite seats has been on this board for nearly five years. don't worry, this thread will be off the front page soon enough....)