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by jorge-d 1037 days ago
A few years ago most people would have said the same about fingerprint reading or face scanning, and yet we're living in a world where it is completely standard now
5 comments

> we're living in a world where it is completely standard now

No it isn't. Ew. If an employer asked to fingerprint me I'd tell them where to stick their scanner.

You know what is "completely standard" now? Governments and corporations leaking terabytes of private information, with barely a shred of accountability.

We need to be pulling this in the exact opposite direction, not normalizing it; and not adding retina scans to the list of insecure biometric data.

Sam Altman needs a swift reality slap.

> If an employer asked to fingerprint me I'd tell them where to stick their scanner.

There are some situations where this may be ok. Working for the police themselves as an example. ;)

>If an employer asked to fingerprint me I'd tell them where to stick their scanner.

They don't need to, because your employer probably asked you for a form of biometric ID.

I've never once had an employer ask me for such a thing.
Weird. Every job I've had has asked for my passport (UK) or work permit (US).
I'm in the US, and every employer has asked me for proof that I can legally work in the US. But none of the proof I provide involves biometric data (unless you count the photo on my driver's license as "biometric data"). But I'm a citizen, and I could easily imagine that the requirements might be more strict for noncitizens.
Keeping the data offline, on device. That's the big difference. I don't consent to using such online. No, not for captchas or payment either. Because 2FA/MFA and passport copy is suffice for opening bank account and authenticating with it. For payment, IBAN transfer is also suffice.

Altman is banking on the hype of those who are cynical on AI/ML hype dystopia.

I still say the same about those things, and I don't willingly allow others to read my fingerprints or scan my face. Fortunately, I'm almost never asked -- so it's not exactly "standard".
Mass collection of fingerprints or face scans from people is not standard.
It is probably more standard than you realize? Quick search shows over 14 million are enrolled in the airport program that requires iris scanning, as well as fingerprints.
Are you talking about the US? 14 million out of a population of 340 million doesn't sound very standard to me.
Yes, US. And agreed it isn't majority, is why I gave the number. Should have made that clearer.

Probably better to look at passport, if we are only talking about fingerprints. And that is about half of the US? Still not a majority, but I assume a lot of "standard" things aren't majority. I was pointing out that it is getting more widespread.

I know the US hates IDs, rightfully, but fingerprints and photo ID is common in less free parts of the world. Wait until you hear about mandatory DNA sampling!
That isn't a success; it indicates a sick society. One that is profitable for Y combinator though.