How much security could that form be adding if you can apply for it literally minutes before travelling to the US. I heard from an American work colleague that

How much security could that form be adding if you can apply for it literally minutes before travelling to the US. I heard from an American work colleague that a main point is traceability. You pay with a credit card and can fairly easily be tracked by that, while you're in the country. I'm not sure how true this is and I'm not a believer in whacky conspiracy theories, but it seemed rather plausible.