ID check when buying M-rated game at Target?

[quote name='meds']Not acknowledging someone who greets you as you walk through the door-RUDE
Chewing a big ass wad of gum while talking-RUDE[/QUOTE]

:roll: That's all I'm saying on both of these. And yes, I have done both of these before.
 
I just don't get why they have to scan the card. I'll let them check ID, but I won't let them scan the card into their system. It's just an invasion of privacy.
 
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[quote name='mr_burnzz']no, i am 25 and the ps3 i bought months ago is my newest console since sega. or the psp i got in 2008. so the last time i bought a game was before the rating system existed. It's not that i feel that ID checking is a bad thing. i think its just useless. which i suppose is bad. but whatever.

Its just that the guy that worked at target in the previous post seemed like he blatantly gave the kid a hard time. I mean, yea the kid was a douche but kids ARE douches. No need to go out of your way to torment him further.[/QUOTE]

I'm pretty sure the ESRB was in effect during the Sega Genesis days. Mortal Kombat was one of the first games to get an ESRB rating, I believe.

ID checking is useless? It's meant to keep games with content unsuitable for children, out of kids' grubby little hands. Yes, they will find a way to get it eventually, but this is a system in place to protect the younger kids from trying to buy the stuff, as well as covering corporate's ass all in one fell swoop.
 
The ESRB has been around since the mid-90s. There were precursors to the ESRB, as well, including the VRC, which rated...you guessed it...Sega games, including those on the Genesis. So, yeah, ratings have been around since the 16-bit era.
 
I bought that HBO baseball series (hated it) @ Target and didn't get carded, why is that? That was always my problem that M-rated games were carded but not R-rated movies and TV shows.

My only problem is I don't like how the card has to be scanned now. It's hard to get my ID out of my wallet and right now my current address is on an authorized business-card sized document taped to the back of my ID because when I went to get the address on my license changed on Election Day 08 their computers were down so they just gave me a card to attach to the back of my ID.
 
[quote name='DarkRider23']I just don't get why they have to scan the card. I'll let them check ID, but I won't let them scan the card into their system. It's just an invasion of privacy.[/QUOTE]

I was thinking the exact same thing, the problem isn't they are checking IDs, its scanning the ID, no way in hell am I letting anyone scan my ID.
 
[quote name='crewj']the registers won't progress unless the cashier scans the card.

there's some kind of huge prompt on the screen that says scan id or something when an M rated game is scanned.[/QUOTE]

Exactly. You can bypass it with a supervisor override, but that's only for cases when the ID's magnetic strip is dead and the barcode on the ID is worn, which has happened to me once.

I've had to card 60+ year old men and women. They laugh about it and say it's a good idea when I explain why, plus they seem to enjoy being carded. Makes 'em feel young again, I guess. I have never had anyone complain about me asking to swipe their ID.

As far as people claiming "invasion of privacy," that's ridiculous. All it does is confirm your true DOB on the magnetic strip. It's fool-proof, in such cases as someone trying to use a fake ID, or the cashier is number dyslexic or just a moron.

And inconsistencies happen. Sometimes a game isn't tagged in the system properly, so it won't prompt. This happened with the COD:MW2 360 bundle. You would get carded for the by itself, but if you bought the $400 bundle, it wouldn't ask for ID. But that was fixed within days of release.
 
[quote name='NfoRcErX']
I actually am currently on vacation in Hawaii, and when I visited the honolulu target, I was surprised to find out that they actually have to get a supervisor to override a manual date of birth entry if the ID won't scan (GA driver's licenses have a barcode, but it doesn't work at POS systems). My store definitely isn't that strict, but I think the idea of checking ID for a game is a minor hassle that shouldn't really bother anyone.[/QUOTE]

I also live in Georgia and barcode thing is never an issue. If anyone's had their license anymore than a 6 months, the barcodes won't scan anyway.

I understand the OP's frustration, but the law is the law. If you feel like it's an invasion of your privacy (info is being sent somewhere when it gets swiped whether you buy games, beer or cigarettes), there are several ways to demagnetize/alter it if one was "so inclined to do so".

I'm just waiting for the day when I go buy the latest Mario Brothers game and the cashier asks me have I ever been convicted of having "sexual relations" with a minor.
 
[quote name='mr_burnzz']

Its just that the guy that worked at target in the previous post seemed like he blatantly gave the kid a hard time. I mean, yea the kid was a douche but kids ARE douches. No need to go out of your way to torment him further.[/QUOTE]

In my mind, any kid who is a douche deserves it.

Thinking back to my childhood, I'm sure I wasn't a polite angel 100% of the time, but I was respectful most of the time. And the times I acted like a douche, I'm sure I deserved whatever came my way.

Kids ARE stupid. But that doesn't mean you have to let it slide. Or contribute to the delinquency of a minor. Let them google whatever the fuck they want. THat's on their parents. But if I was working retail, I wouldn't sell them shit they weren't supposed to get either.
 
[quote name='confoosious']In my mind, any kid who is a douche deserves it.

Thinking back to my childhood, I'm sure I wasn't a polite angel 100% of the time, but I was respectful most of the time. And the times I acted like a douche, I'm sure I deserved whatever came my way.

Kids ARE stupid. But that doesn't mean you have to let it slide. Or contribute to the delinquency of a minor. Let them google whatever the fuck they want. THat's on their parents. But if I was working retail, I wouldn't sell them shit they weren't supposed to get either.[/QUOTE]

I agree, and kids are getting stupider and more rude every year. Some of the shit that I see in stores is ridiculous. I'm only 18, but it pisses me off with these little brats running around, doing what they want. If I pulled some of the stuff that kids pull nowadays, not only would I feel like a dick, my mom would beat my ass. Stupid/rude kids deserve everything they have coming for them. I've always made it my goal to treat retail employees (and everyone else) with the utmost respect, and there's no reason why kids nowadays shouldn't do the same.
 
[quote name='meds']This is the kind of crap we retail guys deal with that makes us act the way we do sometimes. I am nice and polite to every single customer I deal with until they give me a reason not to. Now don't get me wrong, It doesn't take much of a reason. The way I look at it is I go out of my way to be incredibly friendly and helpful to each and every customer I deal with. If I am going out of my way to help someone I don't understand their need to be difficult/rude/mean.

If I were a cashier and had a customer refuse to allow me to scan their d/l for their date of birth, that is a case of a customer being needlessly difficult and the kind of customer I would not go out of my way to help.

There are often times when people ask for items which we are out of stock on. If they were rude and/or not friendly with me then "I'm sorry ma'am/sir I am out of that right now." If they were nice and polite then "I'm sorry ma'am/sir I am out of that right now but let me see what I can do to help you out today." From that point there are quite a few things I can do to get them what they want. It all depends on how they treat me as to how helpful I can be.

Not acknowledging someone who greets you as you walk through the door-RUDE
Talking on a cell phone while trying to talk to an employee about what you want-RUDE
Chewing a big ass wad of gum while talking-RUDE
Letting your child run rampant in a store-RUDE
Saying I want/need instead of do you have or I would like please-RUDE
I could go on and on but these are the biggest ones that immediately put me in not so helpful mode. /end rant[/QUOTE]
Oddly I don't see "requesting not to have id scanned" in your list of things that upset you. I have zero sympathy for you.
 
[quote name='DarkRider23']I just don't get why they have to scan the card. I'll let them check ID, but I won't let them scan the card into their system. It's just an invasion of privacy.[/QUOTE]


...exactly my thoughts. Big Brother has no business knowing what, where or how many of something I buy. I have no problem showing my ID but that is where I put my foot down and call for the MGR. Who knows where that info on your ID might end up sometime down the road. Think ID theft, GRR!!

OH, Merry Christmas everyone! notice I didn't say happy holidays yuk!
 
In all honesty, this is why I just shop at the local store. No ID check :). I can just get what I want from him as he gets all the new games in and usually prices them fairly decent. About 5 bucks under retail.
 
When they upgraded to touch screen register system the ID scanning was added. Depending on when your store had it's system upgraded, it happened about 6 months ago.
 
[quote name='ingramba'].
OH, Merry Christmas everyone! notice I didn't say happy holidays yuk![/QUOTE]

Amazingly, not everyone celebrates Christmas in America. Saying Happy Holidays is absolutely appropriate. Calling a Christmas tree a holiday tree (you only use it to celebrate Christmas and not Hanukkah) is not appropriate, but there is nothing wrong with being more inclusive and accepting of all religions by saying Happy Holidays.
 
Every store should be asking. And every parent should be paying attention to what their children are playing
 
This type of thing is a "love it or hate it" kind of situation. I don't think they should keep people evidently above 17 from buying M-rated games if they forgot their ID, but at the same time they should be checking IDs for people who don't look at be 17.

I think the system is simply really, and the only time it becomes moronic is when 30-year old adults are not allowed to buy M-rated games because they forgot their ID.
 
[quote name='Thekrakrabbit']the only time it becomes moronic is when 30-year old adults are not allowed to buy M-rated games because they forgot their ID.[/QUOTE]

You can't go by looks in these situations, because the age sensitive older people cry foul when you don't card them, and the youthful looking elders bitch when you do. And then the parents of the kid with the extra Y-chromosome sue the store and lobby for anti-games legislation.

It's like this: they either card you, or congress decides they're going to regulate the games industry.

Suck it up and carry your damned license (or in case of the petulant teenager, just bring your parents in the first place, and stop being a little shit about it).
 
[quote name='Thekrakrabbit']This type of thing is a "love it or hate it" kind of situation. I don't think they should keep people evidently above 17 from buying M-rated games if they forgot their ID, but at the same time they should be checking IDs for people who don't look at be 17.

I think the system is simply really, and the only time it becomes moronic is when 30-year old adults are not allowed to buy M-rated games because they forgot their ID.[/QUOTE]

You have to check everyone's ID though because if you don't, then someone who doesn't look 17 (but looks older) could buy the game, and if their parentals flip out on the store for not carding then it becomes a judgment call by the store to fire that employee. They would rather not put the employee in that shitty situation (and granted, I would not want to be in that situation. AT ALL.) of deciding who gets carded and who does not. Being all-inclusive and carding everyone is a fine system. If you don't want your ID checked, don't fuckin' shop at Target for video games. 'Nuff said. :)
 
[quote name='bigdaddybruce44']Some of you...not gonna mention names...need to remove the tin foils head...like right now. They are rotting what is left of your brains.[/QUOTE]

It's not that we're paranoid, it's just that the government doesn't have the right to know what where doing and when we're doing it. It's the same reason I don't my phone calls recorded, even if they are just to say "pick up bread". It's the principal of the matter.
 
My and some friends were trying to buy the original Halo for Xbox a while back, and none of us were 17 yet, but all of us were 16. We stopped at probably 5 different places, and every single one turned us down because we weren't old enough, the real kicker was that one of us was turning 17 in 4 days.
 
[quote name='bigdaddybruce44']Some of you...not gonna mention names...need to remove the tin foils head...like right now. They are rotting what is left of your brains.[/QUOTE]

Don't people wrap their food in tinfoil to keep it fresher longer?! Hmmm?! Not so crazy now are we Mr. Beeboop!? Now if you don't mind I'm gonna go eat some crayons to keep my lead levels down so the robot government won't harvest me.



And to relate to the thread, so far I've never been carded. It's probably because I almost always buy online, and when I don't buy online I buy the game used. Store's don't seem to care about age if you're giving them all the profits from the sale.
 
[quote name='HydroX']You have to check everyone's ID though because if you don't, then someone who doesn't look 17 (but looks older) could buy the game, and if their parentals flip out on the store for not carding then it becomes a judgment call by the store to fire that employee. They would rather not put the employee in that shitty situation (and granted, I would not want to be in that situation. AT ALL.) of deciding who gets carded and who does not. Being all-inclusive and carding everyone is a fine system. If you don't want your ID checked, don't fuckin' shop at Target for video games. 'Nuff said. :)[/QUOTE]


I believe it is a fine system as it is now too. Carding everyone doesn't do any hurt, and I like seeing people get impatient in line.

"Can I see your ID?"
"Ugh. *huffs* HERE!"
*Stares at ID while person rolls eyes*
"OK, have a nic-"
"Whatever *gone*"

Hehehehehe
 
[quote name='Thekrakrabbit']I believe it is a fine system as it is now too. Carding everyone doesn't do any hurt, and I like seeing people get impatient in line.

"Can I see your ID?"
"Ugh. *huffs* HERE!"
*Stares at ID while person rolls eyes*
"OK, have a nic-"
"Whatever *gone*"

Hehehehehe[/QUOTE]

LOL .. what makes that hilarious is that is a dead-on reenactment.
 
I don't have a huge problem with them checking ID, but like other said they shouldn't have to scan it. The TSA does not swipe my ID when I travel and I don't have my ID swiped when I buy alcohol, so I don't see any reason why a visual verification of an ID is not sufficient for buying a video game.

How many people are going to risk using a fake ID to purchase a video game? I am an advocate for keeping certain games out of the hands of children, but if someone underage presents a fake ID they have bigger issues than playing an M rated video game.
 
[quote name='pulsar0510']I don't really have a problem with the ID check, although as has been pointed out :there is NO LAW requiring it.
I do, however, have a problem with them scanning my license. Checking my DOB is one thing, but Target doesn't need all the info a scan pulls. I make them call a manager and override.[/QUOTE]


take a closer look at your license. Odds are, the barcode only contains your DOB, license number, and expiration date. I'm pretty sure all states do it that way.
 
So, just to make sure I understand so far, we have the following arguments AGAINST carding:

1. C'mon man, be cool.
2. I don't want big brother stealing my personal info!
3. How annoying!

As far as the scanning thing goes, isn't that just for convienence? When you can scan someone's ID you don't have to go about staring at it looking for the DOB and all that jazz. When the guy at the liquor store is squinting at my liscense for 5 seconds I can see the necessity of an ID scanner in a busy big box store. Sure, the time saved might seem pretty miniscule, but at the same time I doubt they thought it would cause a riot and angry gamers would "demand that the manager override the scan"(I'm still a little skeptical that whoever said this actually does this btw). Most importantly though, is there any evidence that these scanners store our buying info or whatever it is people are afraid of them taking? Personally I'm more scared of the fact that someone who doesn't like me online can trace my IP address and harass my family than Target's computers knowing that I bought DOAX 2 so perhaps I'm just too leinent on the whole issue to begin with.

BTW, I have been to a liquor store that scans IDs.
 
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Scanning takes away any possibility of "fraud" for lack of a better word. Perhaps you have a cashier who can't do math or a friend of the buyer or is simply lazy and types in any date. Basically, if you scan it for the date, then it's the DMV's issue, not yours.
 
Alright, I do not care about getting my ID checked. I sell things at local stores (Mega Media Xchange, Pre-Played) and they MUST scan your ID to sell items, so I am used to getting carded. I'm 21, and a woman working there once said she thought I was around 15. It takes an extra minute to have em look at your ID, and even with scanning, do you think a company like Target or Wal Mart needs to steal your information? I think people make too big a fuss over this need to find something worth while to bitch about.
 
[quote name='Access_Denied']It's not that we're paranoid, it's just that the government doesn't have the right to know what where doing and when we're doing it. It's the same reason I don't my phone calls recorded, even if they are just to say "pick up bread". It's the principal of the matter.[/QUOTE]

...wow...
 
[quote name='Access_Denied']It's not that we're paranoid, it's just that the government doesn't have the right to know what where doing and when we're doing it. It's the same reason I don't my phone calls recorded, even if they are just to say "pick up bread". It's the principal of the matter.[/QUOTE]

:wall::wall::wall::wall::wall::wall:
 
[quote name='ufskenney']Amazingly, not everyone celebrates Christmas in America. Saying Happy Holidays is absolutely appropriate. Calling a Christmas tree a holiday tree (you only use it to celebrate Christmas and not Hanukkah) is not appropriate, but there is nothing wrong with being more inclusive and accepting of all religions by saying Happy Holidays.[/QUOTE]


...My apologies if I offended anyone. I guess what I meant was years ago there was no one saying Happy Holidays, Everywhere you went or people you talked to said Merry Christmas and didn't think twice about offending anyone or getting sued. Call me old fashioned (46 years old) Guess its a sign of the times & I miss the "old days". Merry Christmas to everyone & same to others in their version of saying it. Peace
 
Same thing here. Only thing I hate is my ID is a bitch to get out of the plastic. I'm a dick though depending on how they ask for it. Sometimes I'll whip out my passport and they have to get a manager to come up and do some weird stuff to the register. I also use my passport when I go out drinking and buy booze also and make up funny accents at the counter depending on who I am with.
 
if you think that anything aside from a DOB verification is being done when swiping an ID then you are an idiot, end of story. "big brother" isn't monitoring you, if you're that worried about it you probably shouldn't even have a cellphone, since they have secret chips in them that can be activated at anytime by the government to listen to your conversations and conspire against you, you also shouldn't use microwaves, or have a bank account, these are all ways that the man is getting your info!
 
Neither Target nor the U.S. government are monitoring your purchases when they scan your driver license. Now savings cards you have to sign up for at every store in order to get discounts, on the other hand, the stores are keeping tabs on you and your buying habits.
 
[quote name='sleepydumbdude']Same thing here. Only thing I hate is my ID is a bitch to get out of the plastic. I'm a dick though depending on how they ask for it. Sometimes I'll whip out my passport and they have to get a manager to come up and do some weird stuff to the register. I also use my passport when I go out drinking and buy booze also and make up funny accents at the counter depending on who I am with.[/QUOTE]

"Out of the plastic"? Is your ID factory sealed or something? That'd be a sight... CAGs at the DMV getting mad because they got a "gutted" driver's license.

I'm sure you mean you have an ID holder or something in your wallet, I'll admit it's a pain trying to take it out of those... but it sounds like even more of a hassle carrying around a passport, why are you doing that?

Surprisingly, I've never been carded for a game before. When I bought Vice City for my bro some years ago I had an old man at walmart inform me that "we got cameras all around here" when I told him I wasn't yet ready to check out at the electronics register. You folks complaining about being carded should all be so lucky that you're not instead being greeted by employees that openly assume you're a theif.
 
[quote name='SilentStryk09']take a closer look at your license. Odds are, the barcode only contains your DOB, license number, and expiration date. I'm pretty sure all states do it that way.[/QUOTE]
They need my license number and expiration date for something that isn't a law why exactly? What you see as no big deal is a huge deal to me. We're different people that way.
 
I've had enough of this thread. I'm going to wal-mart to stock up on bottled water and canned food. Then it's to the gun shop to load up on some ammo and grenades. We will be living in our bomb shelter from now on. The government is out to get us and it all started with them scanning my gd driver's license, ahhhhhhh!!!
 
[quote name='pulsar0510']They need my license number and expiration date for something that isn't a law why exactly? What you see as no big deal is a huge deal to me. We're different people that way.[/QUOTE]

Was it confirmed that they NEED your license number and/or expire date? I think someone just mentioned that this is what is on your ID, not that it's something the systems scans for.

I think your remark leads to another question... if this is a "huge deal" where exactly do you draw the line? When you go out to eat, do you only pay with cash(so the waiter doesn't snap a pic of your card when he takes it to the register)? What about your privacy here on the internet?

If we're assuming the worst here(in this case we're assuming that Target is storing your personal information on a server or something correct?), then what do you in other situations where your personal information is (hypothetically)at stake?
 
[quote name='eastshore4']Was it confirmed that they NEED your license number and/or expire date? I think someone just mentioned that this is what is on your ID, not that it's something the systems scans for.

I think your remark leads to another question... if this is a "huge deal" where exactly do you draw the line? When you go out to eat, do you only pay with cash(so the waiter doesn't snap a pic of your card when he takes it to the register)? What about your privacy here on the internet?

If we're assuming the worst here(in this case we're assuming that Target is storing your personal information on a server or something correct?), then what do you in other situations where your personal information is (hypothetically)at stake?[/QUOTE]

Here is where I draw the line...
Giving the minimum amount of needed information to complete a transaction. In the case of video games, the need to produce ID is for liability reasons to protect the company from law suits. I get that. I am happy to produce my ID to let them visually validate my age which is an acceptable means for me to purchase alcohol, fly, and a myriad of other things that have law defined age requirements.

I don't know exactly what information is encoded on the magnetic strip (do you??), but I am willing to bet there are personal identifiers on that strip. We have no idea of knowing what information is pulled when the card is swiped. Maybe it only check DOB, but maybe it also reads your home zip code and puts that in a database. It might pull other demographic data such as gender. This information may be used by the company to help with their marketing. I am not given any sort of privacy statement when my card is swiped, so I don't know what personal information is being obtained about me and what it is used for. The point being, unless you are highly placed within the organization (Target, in this case) you don't know for sure what information is being pulled.

It may not seem like a big deal to have your card swiped, but that information is valuable information and it is mine to do with as I wish. If someone wants that information then they need to provide me with some sort of compensation (i.e., coupons, etc). This is how the loyalty cards work at different stores. It is MY option to give up information about myself if I choose to join a particular program.

Not my problem if they (the store) can't hire workers that follow their own procedure. If workers ignored the procedure and it is so important to have this information, then make it a termination offense for anyone that doesn't follow the procedure. As a customer, I shouldn't not have to be the one that has to make up for a businesses inability to follow its own procedures.
 
My question wasn't about why you don't want them to swipe their cards... I was already aware that you didn't want them stealing your personal info. My question was if this is such a big deal, then what do you do in other situations involving personal information? Do you make the same assumption that everyone else is going to be abusing your info like these ID scanners are? To what extent is your "fight for privacy" taken?
 
It is not necessarily a "fight for privacy" and I honestly don't think Target is doing anything more than getting a DOB.

As I said at the beginning, I believe they should get the minimum appropriate amount of information to complete the transaction. In this situation all they need is my DOB and that can be obtained from the front of my card. There is absolutely no reason why they need access to any more information than that. Can you offer an explanation as to why I should allow them to have access an electronic copy of all the information contained on that magnetic strip (even if they don't look at it)? That information is valuable and I don't give it up for free.

What would you say if they asked to see a statement of your full net worth and where all the accounts are located to make sure you have enough money to pay for the game? All they need to know is I have enough money and/or credit to pay for that particular game.

If the proper incentive is offered, I may be willing to give more information. For example, I am a member of a frequent flier program. I am willing to give them the requested sign up information because it is appropriate and it is worth it to me. If they want more demographic data about me then they need to offer the right incentive. It is for the very same reason why I don't do feedback surveys unless there is some sort of incentive offered.
 
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