Recently traveled abroad and was shocked at how dystopian moving through borders is anymore. Scans after scans of passports, fingerprinting, face scans, questions about intentions for visiting, paperwork, cameras throughout airports that are surely doing untold amounts of biometric analysis with some bullremoved AI…in some of these places you get laughed at if you ask about opting out. It almost isn’t worth it.
Where are you experiencing this ? I have not experienced personally this in South America or Europe. It is usually just the immigration who look at the passport and let you through once you say you’re visiting or whatever
Japan. It went full 1984.
Ah that explains it. They have their own way of doing things over there. Thanks for sharing your experience all the same, it is good to know.
You are never going to cross a border anonymously. The extra checks are to prevent people crossing borders under a false identity. If you are travelling under your own identity, then you are no less private than you ever were. They’re just taking extra precautions to prevent people from using false identities.
I disagree. I had to scan my passport 3 times in the same room before I could exit it. removed is insane. I’ve traveled quite a bit and never experienced such things.
Did you consider your privacy invaded any more after the third time than the first?
The fun part is that you don’t have to do all that stuff if you have a long term visa.
Interesting, I didn’t have this experience a couple of years ago. I wonder if they’ve just upped it to try and “automate” things more with the crazy amount of tourism they’re suddenly getting. Also I’d be curious on which airport you went to, Haneda or Narita?
If the scans and such were in the states, I’ve requested opting out and no one really cared, they just said okay. Funny enough, it actually made me go through quicker than it was taking everyone who did the face scans, contradicting the sign claiming it’s quicker.
Seconded. I was just traveling to Japan from the States. While it was more or less painless, it was pretty invasive.
Same, though its been two years since my last trip to europe (Spain specifically), it didn’t feel much different than when I went as far back as 20 years ago.
About the only real difference was the EU passports, and how much easier that was for people. Wish I could get one! Would also be a great backup plan for a return of insanity here in the US, but I don’t think I can qualify for any of them. Missed by one generation for citizenship by descent…
Anyway. Seems it was Japan in this case, Europe and South America (though its been maybe a decade or so since I went) dont seem any different to me. The middle east trips used to be kind of wonk, and I bet still are, but I’m not going to that area again anytime soon.