Stupid Security at The Simpsons Movie!

Together with some other Microsofties I went to a cinema earlier this evening to see The Simpsons Movie - I really enjoyed the show.

We went to a cinema that I've only been to once before and that was years ago. Upon booking online I was pleasently surprised to find that I could print my own ticket just like many of the airlines allow. On the print out was the instruction that the "ticket" should be "...PRESENTED TO THE USHER FOR ADMITTANCE". I wondered how they were going to distinguish my valid "ticket" from any other print out and noted that there was a bar code down the right handside apparently to solve that very problem.

I was staggered to find that the usher simply ripped my "ticket" in two just like they would have with a traditional ticket - they didn't validate it in any way - I was left with the piece pictured below.

Ripping a traditional ticket in two to prevent it's reuse makes sense. Doing so with a print out is ridiculous!

It made me think that (a) I should stop thinking about security when going to the cinema! & b) performing actions "just because that's how it's always been done" doesn't always make sense.

Comments

• Anonymous
  January 01, 2003
  Publishing information that can lead to circumvention of a security system is, under some cursumstances, a DMCA violation today. I wonder if your post will be (or perhaps already is!) a crime in the dystopian future we seem to be so rapidly approaching. Hopefully, you took positive action in addition to blogging about it. The management of the theater should know about this absurdity.

• Anonymous
  January 01, 2003
  TechBlog> hence the reason I tore the top off my "ticket" to remove the name of the cinema before photographing it. I have indeed let them know.