Fingerprinting schoolkids

Bruce Schneier explains why fingerprinting schoolkids to combat child kidnapping is an ineffective way of fulfilling the stated purpose. However, if you consider the agenda of the folks who introduced the scheme,

"If a kidnapping occurs on school property, the subsequent investigation could easily hurt school officials. They could even lose their jobs. If you view this security countermeasure as one protecting them just as much as it protects children, it suddenly makes more sense. The trade-off might not be worth it in general, but it’s worth it to them.

Kidnapping is a real problem, and countermeasures that help reduce the risk are a good thing. But remember that security is always a trade off, and a good security system is one where the security benefits are worth the money, convenience, and liberties that are being given up. Quite simply, this system isn’t worth it."

Schneier's latest Crypto-Gram full of sensible commentary on a wide range of security issues has just been posted.