CineWorld

The UGC Cinema in Dublin has a new name: CineWorld. I love that place. 17 screens, a bar, a HUGE sweetie shop, CineWorld has it all. In fact, it is too good, and can be dangerous (see a previous article).

To help feed my habit, I tried to get one of their Unlimited cards the other day. It is a pretty sweet deal, for €17.50 per month, you can go to as many films as you like. For someone who goes as often as I do, it is good value for money.

Anyway, I go up to the desk, and the friendly and helpful member of staff asks me for my details, informing me he'll need a statement from my bank as proof.

Unfortunately, I did not have one. Also, getting one is going to be a pain, because An Post are on strike at the moment over an industrial dispute.

This is irritating.

However, the member of staff said "If you want, you can print a statement from the web if you have online banking, since those usually also contain your bank details."

That annoyed the hell out of me. Accepting a web printout as verification for ANYTHING is one of the most stupid things I have ever heard. In fact, it makes a joke of their entire system. Forging something like that is almost painfully easy.

Forging a Bank of Ireland statement would not be difficult, but at least it involves effort and know-how. Forging a website is ridiculously simple.

Admittedly, the liability is low, since once the bank details collapse, all they will have lost is a few cinema tickets.

Thus, all this security measure does is inconvenience customers.

Some organisations really do not have a clue.