Civil liberties concerns about bank fingerprinting
October 17, 2008 by Personal Liberty News Desk
Each year, millions of foreign visitors to the U.S. are fingerprinted at the airport – but did you know that some banks may also require prints from American citizens?
Bank of America customer Pauline Pavlis told the Press of Atlantic City about her experience trying to cash a check at one of the bank’s branches.
Because she is not a customer, she was asked to give a thumbprint to prove her identity, a practice which Pavlis questioned.
"I feel like it’s infringing on my personal liberties. You hear all the time about misuse of personal information," she told the news provider.
Fingerprinting is a common requirement for noncustomers at larger banks, the article states. Five years ago, one of these people sued Bank of America because it would not cash his check without a print and a Maryland court of appeals sided with the bank.
Timothy Doherty of the New Jersey Bankers Association, said that banks have a right to give preferential treatment to customers and prevent identity fraud.
He added that "the issue of protecting identities outweighs the issue of people concerned about giving thumbprints."
The government began fingerprinting foreign visitors to the U.S. in 2004. 
Of course, this is nothing new. Banks in my area have been fingerprinting for years when you try to cash a check. This is just another example of the government collecting a dossier on every American. A fingerprint here… a little information on your banking habits there… medical records, credit reports, credit card usage, etc., etc. It all adds up to a complete profile on every American. Everything is known.
You have to work extremely hard to maintain any shred of privacy in the world today. Readers of The Bob Livingston Letter know this well and get regular updates on how to maintain as much privacy as you can, legally. –Bob
I had an interesting experience with a fingerprinting attempt by a bank.
I sold some equipment to an equipment dealer and he paid with a check drawn on a local account. I went to the bank and they demanded a fingerprint and I declined stating” I am not going to be fingerprinted like a criminal”. They then refused to cash the check. I instructed them to call their customer and tell the customer they would not cash the check and I am coming back there, the deal is off.
They called the customer, he told them to cash the check and that was the end of it.
Since then I have refused to accept checks in any deal.
I carry a home made “fingerprint” card, I sell my fingerprints $50,000 each. If you want a fingerprint it’s cash up front. (My fgpts are MY property and they are not a GIFT to anyone.) Be brave and free ,dont’ let the banks and check cashing places get your fingerprint for nothing. So simple.
I like your idea. Now, is that $50,000 per print or per ‘set of ten’ (full set of prints)??
Wouldn’t to much good to ‘sell’ them to a bank these days….they’re strapped and have to borrow from the government.
Still, it’s a ‘nice’ idea!!
Love it… $50,000 each yes! lol
Whether you realize it or not, most states already have your private property fingerprints on file anyway. Almost every state in the union has gone at least a thumb or forefinger print, if not a complete, “ten set,” when you obtain your driver’s license or state identification card.
If any of you have ever been in the military, your complete fingerprints AND both hand prints are on file through the Department of Defense, who by the way, provided a copy to be maintained in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s data base . . . just for your safe keeping.
Ever been picked up for DUI ? Shoplifting ? Obtained a gun permit ? Folks there are so many ways the government, through your state and other local official channels have obtained your information, it isn’t funny.
Besides. The Bible says the thing to worry about is a MARK placed IN the RIGHT HAND or ON THE FOREHEAD. There’s nothing said about a Social Security Number, thumb or finger prints, hand prints or “government ID cards. BUT A COMPANY IN FLORIDA IS (!!) WORKING ON A RICE GRAIN SIZED MICROCHIP THAT IS PLACED BY SUBCUTANEOUS INJECTION. THE CHIP WILL HOLD PERSONAL, MEDICAL, BANKING, INSURANCE, FINANCIAL (STOCKS, BONDS, 401K’s, etc) AND PERTINENT FAMILY INFORMATION AS WELL AS IF YOU’RE AN ALZHEIMER’S PATIENT, A POLICE RECORD AND SO ON !!!
First of all, the fingerprint is not used for identification. It is kept on file in case the check turns out to be fraudulent. That is the very definition of a warrantless and a priori restraint on my rights to privacy and due process in the absence of probable cause of wrong-doing.
If your fingerprint is already all over the check when you hand it to the teller why does BOA require you to put your fingerprint on it before they cash it? Because it then becomes “voluntary”
It has to be voluntary so that a few years from now when all of our fingerprints are loaded into a database and we no longer have any financial privacy at all, we can’t complain about it because we volunteered.
Banks are NOT the govt.
I will give my fingerprint to my govt. but I should NOT have to give my darn fingerprint to any bank in order for THEM to complete their contract of payment.
Especially as I’ve already shown 2 forms of ID, been videotaped for several minutes, and the CHECK has been verified already on the phone.
The older Social Security cards had printed on the back that they were not to be used for identification purposes. The newer ones don’t carry that admonition. Now everyone you deal with asks for your Social Security Number. One more instance of government getting further into our lives.
Went to Citizens bank to cash my paycheck. Same deal here was threatened with fingerprint before cashing. Check clearly states to pay to me and I had proper ID’s. Congress is the only one’s that are legally entitled to making a law like that, NOT A BANK! Policy is not law, therefore, I told the bank manager if he didn’t cash my check, I will call the police and have him arrested. Once more folks, bank policy is NOT LAW! They cashed my check and threatened next time I would be required.
Next, I told my employer I refuse to accept future paychecks issued to me because of my rights being violated and they will have to pay me in cash. Since the employer was a big auto dealership and had millions in the bank, one phone call later and the problem went away!
Don’t give away your rights to anyone. All checks are fingerprint sensitive and the Feds can easily lift prints if needed. The hidden agenda here is to give them a digital picture of your prints along with a face picture to easily share among others without your permission.
Citizens Bank not only requires finger printing for non-customers but in RI charges $5.00 in addition to cash a Citizen Bank check. They don’t required new customers to get fingerprinted so isn’t that discrimination? If you go into a Citizens bank and try to cask a Citizens Bank check for $5.00 and you are not a Citizens Bank account holder you are not only fingerprinted (like a criminal and treated with disrespect) but are robbed of your $5.00. I have convinced the person who gave me the Citizens check I cashed to close their account with Citizens. I suggest all of you to do the same. It is time to stop banks from stealing from people!!
My present Bank does not do this and if they change to that policy I will close my accounts with them.
George – there are many banks in different states that seem to have that name – which Citizens Bank are you referring to – what state —-