Checking the names of other passengers on a flight

[Raghav Gupta]

If we have booked a ticket on a flight and want to check who are the passengers traveling onboard , can we check online through the flight's website?
Or are there security concerns for international as well as domestic flights?
If yes what harm it does to get only a name ( We are not requiring other details)?

 

[Borg]

You really can't see the harm that could be caused? Beyond the simple invasion of privacy if an airline was to make data like that public, once the data was available, people would do things with it. The app builders of the world would have a field day with data like that.

 

[Raghav Gupta]

You really can't see the harm that could be caused? Beyond the simple invasion of privacy if an airline was to make data like that public, once the data was available, people would do things with it. The app builders of the world would have a field day with data like that.

But I am asking that data should be made available only to people who have booked the same flight early. Not publicly shown.

 

[Borg]

You can't trust people like that. It just wouldn't stay private. Just imagine an app where I can enter the flight that I was on and the name of the person who sat in the seat next to me along with some comments. Now call that app the My Annoying Seatmate app. Would you want YOUR name posted on that?

 

[newjerseyrunner]

But I am asking that data should be made available only to people who have booked the same flight early. Not publicly shown.

You are the public.

 

[Raghav Gupta]

You can't trust people like that. It just wouldn't stay private. Just imagine an app where I can enter the flight that I was on and the name of the person who sat in the seat next to me along with some comments. Now call that app the My Annoying Seatmate app. Would you want YOUR name posted on that?

But what only a name does? It is not a unique identity. There are many people with same names.

 

[jtbell]

want to check who are the passengers traveling onboard

Why?

 

[Borg]

But what only a name does? It is not a unique identity. There are many people with same names.

What if your seatmate decides to take your picture without your knowledge and posts that also?

 

[Raghav Gupta]

Why?

So I get to know from our college (having many students) who are traveling in same flight and I can share a taxi with them.

 

[Raghav Gupta]

What if your seatmate decides to take your picture without your knowledge and posts that also?

But for taking pic of me the person has to encounter me in person which is only possible in airport or inside flight. As with only the detail of a name the person can't take a picture of me.

 

[Borg]

But for taking pic of me the person has to encounter me in person which is only possible in airport or inside flight.

Which is generally the same thing that we've been discussing. I'm giving you examples off the top of my head and you're treating them like that's the only way that the data could be misused. Whether you can refute my particular examples or not doesn't change the fact that this is private information that can be misused. Additionally, the airlines would encounter a firestorm of protests if they did something like that.

 

[Choppy]

In addition to what's been said I fear that if something like that were to happen we would see all sorts of horrible outcomes that result from prejudices, unfounded fears, and outright racist beliefs. People would refuse to get on airplanes or insist that other people be booted off for no reason other than the sound or associations with a given name.

 

[Raghav Gupta]

Which is generally the same thing that we've been discussing. I'm giving you examples off the top of my head and you're treating them like that's the only way that the data could be misused. Whether you can refute my particular examples or not doesn't change the fact that this is private information that can me misused. Additionally, the airlines would encounter a firestorm of protests if they did something like that.

Got it. Thanks for discussing the topic. I think I already knew the answer of this before posting thread but wanted to discuss some points.

 

[Raghav Gupta]

In addition to what's been said I fear that if something like that were to happen we would see all sorts of horrible outcomes that result from prejudices, unfounded fears, and outright racist beliefs. People would refuse to get on airplanes or insist that other people be booted off for no reason other than the sound or associations with a given name.

Yeah, applying this logic to other places , even the movie hall doesn't show names of person who have pre-booked.
But PF shows who are the members or passengers online.

 

[jtbell]

But PF shows who are the members or passengers online.

However, most usernames on PF are anonymous and cannot be traced easily to specific real people.

 

[Sophia]

You can't compare Internet forum using nicknames and planes with real names. What if someone wants to get rid of someone then he could arrange plane accident so that the murder would look innocent?
I know I am exaggerating but there are some creepy people out there.
There are stalkers, kidnappers, pathologically jealous partners who won't let the other person go...
And of course people would refuse to travel with Muslims, or in India, they would refuse traveling with people from lower casts.
Etc, etc...

 

[jtbell]

So I get to know from our college (having many students) who are traveling in same flight and I can share a taxi with them.

The appropriate solution for this is a service that allows students at your college to post requests and offers to share rides to specific destinations. When I was an undergraduate more than 40 years ago, we used a bulletin board in the student center for this. (the kind that you post paper notes on, using thumbtacks )

 

[Raghav Gupta]

The appropriate solution for this is a service that allows students at your college to post requests and offers to share rides to specific destinations. When I was an undergraduate more than 40 years ago, we used a bulletin board in the student center for this. (the kind that you post paper notes on, using thumbtacks )

Although that service is not available and nobody uses bulletin board for these kind of requests, facebook or whatsapp is the only alternative for now. The thing is that group is a limited personal one and not quite huge.

 

[Sophia]

I'm sure Facebook group or college discussion forum will work. Many people traveled together like this from my uni

 

[russ_watters]

However, most usernames on PF are anonymous and cannot be traced easily to specific real people.

And those who can do so by choice. And the purpose of the forum is communication, so *some* identity, fake or not, is required.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

If you want to know who might be getting the same flight as you: ask around, be social! Afterall if you had your stalking app what would you do, randomly email these people for a taxi ride?

In pretty much any privacy discussion I firmly believe that the onus should be on the person advocating a breach in privacy to justify it, not the other way round.

 

[StevieTNZ]

So I get to know from our college (having many students) who are traveling in same flight and I can share a taxi with them.

Contact them all prior to the flight, and ask 'are you on xxx flight to xxx?'. If so, ask if they want to share a taxi. You don't need to acquire the name of other passengers who aren't in your college.

 

[StevieTNZ]

Yeah, applying this logic to other places , even the movie hall doesn't show names of person who have pre-booked.
But PF shows who are the members or passengers online.

People can choose to be invisible on the PF users online list.

 

[Raghav Gupta]

People can choose to be invisible on the PF users online list.

I think only the gold members.