Oh I'm sure I'm sure there's some generalized "So you can be tracked down if you do something bad."
But this was just stupid.
My reservation was in the computer.
I had a wallet full of cards including the one I used to make the reservation.
I had a photo ID, just not a government-issued one.
They could trivially have looked me up on the web if they had wanted to.
Trust me. If I'm going to scam a hotel for a couple nights stay, it's not going to be a fleabag Travelodge at SFO. It's managing risk by inflexible rules, not sensible and flexible policy. Of course, IT organizations often do pretty much the same thing.
The whole point of a government-issued ID is the trust behind it. They can be counterfeit, but the penalties for getting caught are severe.
What's the penalty for faking a Visa with picture on it? Nothing.
Of course, there's still a penalty for fraud, but if you're just taking the reservation and not taking the money that's been paid for it, then it's going to be hard to prosecute.
But this was just stupid.
My reservation was in the computer.
I had a wallet full of cards including the one I used to make the reservation.
I had a photo ID, just not a government-issued one.
They could trivially have looked me up on the web if they had wanted to.
Trust me. If I'm going to scam a hotel for a couple nights stay, it's not going to be a fleabag Travelodge at SFO. It's managing risk by inflexible rules, not sensible and flexible policy. Of course, IT organizations often do pretty much the same thing.