Earlier today, we broke the news that Walt Disney World would begin testing facial recognition at the entrance to Magic Kingdom. While the test was quickly shut down earlier this morning, Disney was able to troubleshoot the device and roll it out for guests visiting the theme park this afternoon and evening. As we noted earlier, the process is completely voluntary at this point and will remain voluntary throughout the testing period.

We stopped by Magic Kingdom to take a look!

The entire process is incredibly simple, although it remains to be seen how effective the system will be. With fingerprint biometric scanning suspended due to COVID-19, it’s possible that Disney could be testing this method as a means of creating a biometric scan to create a unique identifier like the fingerprint scan of years past. Guests are asked if they are OK with the process before being told to remove hat and sunglasses but KEEP THEIR FACE MASKS ON. If a guest verbally agrees, they are welcomed into the line. Plenty of other park entry lines without the facial recognition are available and will remain available throughout the testing period.

Once a guest makes it to the park entry tap point, they simply tap a MagicBand or card and look at the device. There is very little to no delay between when a picture is taken and guests are granted access into the park. It’s an incredibly simple and frictionless experience.

Again, the test is completely optional at this point as Disney tests the viability of the system.

As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!