The Pokémon Company in Japan has introduced a new measure to counter Pokémon TCG scalpers: a “facial recognition system” that will check to see if someone has entered a store “more than once in one day,” and refuse re-entry to those who attempt to purchase from a select location twice in the space of 24 hours.
This news comes directly from the official Pokémon Card Game website, in an update issued on July 24. For context, this is a completely separate measure from the one issued on July 21 via the same website, which stated that Japan’s Government ID “My Number” cards will be used to limit Pokémon TCG purchases and lottery entries online and in stores.
【顔認証システム導入のお知らせ】
ポケモンカードストアで防犯、適切な入店、購入制限の判断を目的とした顔認証システムが導入今後ポケモンセンターでも導入あるのでしょうか🤔
皆さん的には顔認証システムの導入どう思います？主なポイント👇
✅小学生以上が対象
✅入店・整理券受取時に顔認証… pic.twitter.com/UWIZwWiKYs— ポケゲトちゃんねる＠ポケモンカードまとめ (@PokeGetInfoMain) July 26, 2026
“At Pokémon Card Stores, in order to provide a safe and secure shopping environment for all customers, to prevent crime, and to ensure compliance with appropriate entry and purchase rules, we will be using a facial recognition system to verify the identity of customers aged elementary school age and older when they enter the store and receive their numbered tickets,” reads the notice on the Pokémon Card Game website (machine translated from Japanese). “To ensure compliance with our entry rules, if we observe multiple attempts to enter the store, our staff may speak to you individually.”
Based on the way the notice is worded, getting caught attempting to bypass the facial recognition checks and enter a store twice in one day will simply earn you a stern talking to. It’s also unclear if these one-time entry checks are per store, or will prevent you from entering subsequent Pokémon stores too.
While the response to the announcement outside of Japan has been somewhat mixed, the comments from those in Japan on Pokémon Information’s post on X seem to be almost unanimously in favor of the newly announced scheme. Personally, I just think it’s depressing that scalping has become such an issue that something like this is being considered in the first place, but I can’t say I’d be psyched about the idea of consenting to a face ID scan just to buy some cardboard if checks like this were put in place in other regions.