[dustypotato]

Maybe it was after boarding the flight? I still find it convenient . It's not that hard to keep the PNR number and surname. The reason it's so open is that there's an Identity check at the next stage where you can't use them if you're faking.

[callmeal]

The concern is more about DOSing - using a pnr and last name, you can view (and in some cases, cancel) online via the airlines web site.