PermitToTravel
Established Member
This just isn't true though! The TVM doesn't have access to that much dataIt can be done for "any named card". Or possibly, more accurately, "any named card that the system recognises as the same name" but it isn't as catchy! This can vary, depending on the card encoder. But cards that are registered to the same name, even if they don't have that name on them, can be identified.
There are a couple of technically possible but not permitted ways to check whether the cards are owned by the same person (e.g. attempt a cardholder-not-present transaction with the postcode) but there just isn't a simple foolproof legal way to tell whether a card presented at the TVM is owned by the same person owning the card used to buy a ticket online
This would make some sense. Does this actually happen? I don't recall any TVM ever showing me a privacy policy or explaining that it's going to remember my card number...Back in the day, I often used a Tesco Ireland Clubcard. But that was when it appeared to be 'same card, no reference required' or 'any card plus booking reference'.
I would have thought that was fairly obvious: it is to provide for an audit trail in the case of fraud.
If, by default, a TVM issued tickets with only a booking reference, then it would be hard to prove it was not you who collected them in the case of a fraud. If that TVM can record that the holder of card X entered the booking reference to obtain the tickets, then (if necessary), card X can be identified. This could enable the police (or whoever) to trace the holder.
So, using my earlier example, if there had been a query about who actually collected the tickets, the TVM could show which card was used. The card number would identify that it was a Tesco Ireland Clubcard and that could lead to identifying that it was me (or someone who had my Clubcard) who collected the tickets.