Profile Photo No Longer Required To Book

[Susan17]

Latest news on profile photos. 

"Today, we’re announcing some changes we will be making to the way we display guest profile photos.

Moving forward, rather than displaying a potential guest’s profile photo before the booking is accepted, hosts will receive a guest’s photo in the booking process only after they’ve accepted the booking request. Airbnb does not require all guests to provide a photo. Instead, we’ll be giving hosts the option to ask their guests to provide a profile photo, which will only be presented to hosts after they accept the booking" 

https://press.airbnb.com/update-on-profile-photos/

[Gordon0]

@Cary20 Judging by what you have said, I don't think Airbnb is for you. That said, demanding photos (that may or may not match your expectations) from would-be guests will see your account revoked anyway I imagine.

[Laura1651]

Gordon you probably have private space, because, the picture doesn’t tell you anything about st least you may have some ideas or who is coming to your house Airbnb said that they do background check I doubt is like Huber said they did background check and it was one killer at least.

what about the person that come to your house is someone that never had criminal records that means he is clean, but it was his first record not because he is good just because until now he is been found and maybe there are looking for him and you not going to be able to see because there is not picture and you would know until he is in your house it that when he already knows your address and maybe he could not do anything but what ablution if he sent someone to do.

think about it, picture matter for so many reasons 

[Mike1034]

AirBnb does NOT do background check. A friends of mine recently had a very bad experience with a guest. He was found multiple criminal records later by the host.

AirBnb puts hosts in danger and does not really care about hosts' safety. That is why they have made this political correct rule for hiding guests' pictures. AirBnb is afraid of lawsuit due to hosts' screening according to the pictures. 

[Sammy35]

yet still his perogative regardless of  your input

[Belinda144]

Guests can see my pic before they book. I need a photo before I accept.  Host are required to provide gov't IDs if they want their guests to provide the same for instant book. It should be same for photo IDs. If you can see what I look like before you book, then I should see what you look like before I accept or decline.  I am not a hotel, motel, guest house or bed and breakfast. I have little apartment, and I live here. I have to see who's coming.

It is for HOSTs to decide who they want in their homes not a discriminatory policy. If a host is racist let them be a racist in the privacy of their own home and host the race of people they are comfortable hosting. How would  guests feel if  hosts were forced to accept them to avoid being labelled as discriminatory? How would  black guests feel vacationing in the home of a white supremist? If Airbnb is concerned about guests safety then this should be considered.  This anti-discriminatory practice of hiding guest pics should be for establishments that host more 10 people or there abouts or host who have no pics up.  Our homes are private and we have a right to decide who we want to come into our homes and not be penalized for it. As a black person I would feel betrayed if I as a guest I ended up in the home of some one who doesn't like black people but was forced to host me because they don't want to be banned from Airbnb or lose their superhost status. This a violation of hosts freedom of choice and creates security risks for people of color.

Scenario

Guest:  I am coming to your home and spend time whether you like me or not. If you don't accept me you will be banned. I know it's your home and everything and you may not want me but I am coming anyway because you have no rght to discriminate against me. I am protectd by Airbnb discrimination policy. 

Host: These guests will not be safe in my neighborhood because of their color/nationality. Should I decline for their safety or accept to secure my Airbnb account or superhost status? Or I don't like 'these people" I will give them a negative review they shouldn't be on Airbnb in the first place. 

Isn't a nondiscrimination policy  void  on private property. Most of the homes being used on Airbnb are private property.  Also, why would a guest want to go where they are not wanted?  The hosts with the unwanted guests could always write a negative review because they a simply racially biased. The nondiscrimination policy should also be used to protect guests from racially biased reviews. Some guests would rather be declined by racially biased people than end up in their homes. Where is that protection?

With all that being said, if a host wants to see pics of guest before accepting they should be allowed that privilege.  Aren't  hosts 50% of Airbnb's revenues or thereabouts? It is very hard for me not to want to see a pic of guest after Airbnb is suggesting that I lower my nightly rates to $18/night. Where  are the hosts benefits here?

[Laura1651]

Belinda I agree with you in so many things, I am Latina but I am white, and I reject many ppl for not providing government ID and at least one told me that I rejected him because judge him by the cover, but this guys first was asking for days that were blocked, second because he didn’t have my requirements and I am sorry to say this he said is because he was black but if I was Latina brown it would be different but he said  it was the reason and it was not, however I am very strict in my rules non drugs and acttitude and he asked me maybe we have friends in commun and when he said that I felt he said that to check in his public profile on Facebook and gosh his favorite words were fuc$$$, he said people called him assh$&& because he always said the right he was smoking weed in pictures and is not his race but this the type of ppl that I don’t want in my house specially because I live there, and just been label as a racist base on some ppl like trouble is not right.

About your coment of white Supremscist and black I feel people should be comfortable with the ppl they want 100%,  I think is not good for ppl to be forced to stay in a house with someone that they are not going to feel ok, no body shoud

forged to like someone that you don’t like, racist does exit in both sides I am not racier but I been labeled as one and maybe not I amo uncorfortsble with some ppl because they base my rules or the way I want ppl been as racist and sometimes is what is going thin.

I feel you should be able to see picture of the person in both sides and to see if both are going to be able to be in the same place.

[Laura1651]

Just as correction ppl have been labeled me as racist base on my rules, because I don’t want gang member with attitudes in my house, specially because we are no hotels that have security guard and if goes out of control we can be in risk, also because I don’t accepted because every they don’t have government is or also don’t provided information that I required anencephaly it bothered.

[Matteo340]

This is the best and most meaningful feedback of them all. This all concept of forcing us to have a less transparent interactiion is nothing elss than abhorrent and it's a safety issue as well, you are right.

I'm personally letting guests know right now that I still require a photo BEFORE they get approved and since Airbnb doesnt allow me to do so anymore I'm declining every single request until this idiotic policy hasn't been removed, apologizing and letting them also know I'm declining because I don't feel comfortable with this new Airbnb policy. Many of them understand and say they are sorry and that's not fare for hosts.

If we all roll with it and passively accept this, I doubt this is going to change anytime soon. 

[Jarrett-And-Ryan0]

This is my first time posting but I've been a host for a couple of years and have had multiple locations. This issue is just now starting to affect me. It makes me feel really uncomfortable not being able to see who is requesting a booking. As a host who does self check-ins, I like to get a feel for who is coming to my place before I accept. The only ways I can do that, are to check out their profile, ask questions about their travel plans and see their picture. Sometimes their profile doesn't have a lot of info to go off of and sometimes they don't divulge much info even when asked, which could be for a multidue of reassons, maybe they're new to Airbnb and don't understand how it works. But a picture is worth a thousand words and gives me an extra sense of who they are, (doesn't matter the color). I get that the whole world is trying to be all inclusive right now, but I feel this has gone overboard. As hosts, we should have the absolute say so of who we allow to come to our homes. We are open books with pictures of ourselves, our places, descriptions, and as much info we can give so that we can be judged by guests before they choose us. Why shouldn't we be able to judge them too? And this is supposed to be about community, but this definitely feels like the opposite and makes me want to start looking at other platforms. 

[Dave-and-ML0]

Hey Great coments I think I will suggest to  Airbnb that we see the Facebook or instagram link then if no picture. Also can you recommend a cleaning turnover person? I am a host in the Pocket and sometimes need help with the turnover. Thanks  Dave 

[Susan1372]

This is totally not satisfactory - Airbnb you want me to invite people in to MY HOUSE and not know who is coming or what they look like. Before I decide, how can we greet them and know it is the person who has booked. And why should we be penalized by people who except lower security standards. They have seen me and the house which is very easy to recognise in this area. But I have no idea what they look like.

It is bad enough that if a guest gets a bad review they make a new profile and then are reborn  again not putting anything that will link them to the previous profile.  You have no idea if someone who for some reason has been flagged elsewhere are planning to stay in your house and we are supposed to be happy about this.

I for one take that first name and profile picture and with that I can normally track that guest down on Facebook and at least check out if they are someone I want in my home. I do not judge people on race, colour or names but I do if they have lots of drunken party photos and are talking drugs in there FB profile.  We have already had one group early on when we were starting our hosting, turn up and smoked drugs and missed check out by 3 hours despite us asking them to leave. The only information is a face on photo and a personal profile and if you got nothing to hide then that should not be a problem. AIRBNB is not like Facebook where we can go on and randomly check a face and profile of someone we have never meet.

I am feeling very uncomfortable about this and if there is no photo and no profile information I will have to decline bookings. And I believe this will cost me my super host badges.  

[Laura1651]

Susan I agree with you I am not comfortable with this, today I found about this and I am not confortable to see their picture before they book, I am survivor so I can be in risk also I used to do not Airbnb and room isn’t not Airbnb and I hadn’t very bad experiences about a guy smoking illegal drugs and I told him not and thank his he left the place and it was recomendé do by a very good friend reason I am in Airbnb is because it felt like it wasn’t safe that way but not knowking who Ian coming specially in this town that I’m where I live is good neighbors but some neighborshiod like any place but because this small town you see mire closer that there are so much drug dealing and we have risk that some of those ppl come as guest in our houses and not that their picture would tell yang who they are but it can be Ian someone that’s Disney have criminal record but someone is looking for them.

and some like many would have our address, also it’s can be that this person isn’t only trying to find out addresses, that they would not put pictures and they don’t care if you cancel them because they already have what they wanted 

[Ben551]

I think it's excellent @Susan1372  that you are using the guest photo to actually due research on a person before they book.  That's the correct usage of a photo, if you ask me, and leads to actual security (not some arbitrary warm fuzzy feeling). 

I take it you use the profile photo to do a Reverse Image Search in order to work out their full name, then match it to their Facebook profile or other social media accounts?

[Laura1651]

How about if your host is survivor of violance? And then person is booking is someone relate to your batter or him and after they book he found the address and now your can’t be host because she has to move.

I think we should be able y to see their pictures before they book, I rejected all races but the most sensitive are only some ppl, but they don’t know that I didn’t reject only them, the reason I reject ppl isn’t because they dint have my requirements like government I’d and they’d refuse to put one, second they request days that I didn’t have, I had guest at the time, they asked me to pay me later,  two asked me not for hemp for sister and son not an air bnb and it bother me that my % basic requirements went down I have 81% Abdul it wasn’t a good reasons to refuse.

for experiences that I have also le I required host recommendations and I do an executions if they willing to provided something else as recommendation. 

To ppl with verify ID one had not host recommendation and Alison wanted to come next day and I don’t have that’s I have to have days of preparation so refuse and second that refuse was because part of maybe requirement actually he wasn’t acceted al ready but because some information that i required he refuse to answer I had to cancel his book and I am sure both felt that it wasn’t based on race and was not, if when they provided wrong info or don’t have what requieres.

their house that are private where their host don’t live there and is all goodness’s burn wheb the host is female anencephaly has to live there And share with them when needs to take so much precautions and not always Ian base in race.

if you hide pictures of the guest hide picture of host also and you will see that it would not work because because there are guest if so many races but also host so you are not protecting both 

[Ariel162]

I disagree with this new policy. Transparency is essential. Profiles need to be verified, pictures need to be visible, reviews need to be accessible.