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It's better to assume that the data page of a passport is public information. There are far too many places in the world where storing a copy of the information
by jltsiren 4y ago
It's better to assume that the data page of a passport is public information. There are far too many places in the world where storing a copy of the information (at least for foreign visitors) is a legal requirement.
Also, high-resolution scans of passports are not a new thing. They were already pretty common in the late 2000s. The biggest change from then is that hotel employees are now more likely to be comfortable with electronic documents than paper copies.
- paranoidrobot 4y ago> It's better to assume that the data page of a passport is public information. Unfortunately there's a disconnect here for what it's used for. If that page is treated as public information, then information on it can't also be used for the 100 Points of ID that public and private organisations want. The document number on my passport is enough to get a credit card with a high limit in my name, sent to an address that's never before been connected with my identity. Maybe some more conservative banks will want the address to match. That information is precisely what was leaked by Optus.