Is DOB required for Vatican Museum Tour?

I would not have thought giving out Date of Birth would be any risk to you. It is in your passport.
Yours, Chris F (06/12/19xx)

Just a guess but it's very possible that they're requiring this info for pricing if, say, a child's or senior's ticket costs less than a standard adult's? It's also possible that this info will be checked against your passports/IDs when you arrive for your tour.

And yes, this info is already in your passport so it available to anyone who asks to see it.

Along with our full names and DOB we need to send credit card info, all via email, which is an insecure transport mechanism. Being in the computer industry has made visible to me the many scams, identity theft, phishing scams, etc so I just get overly cautious. Showing someone my passport of other info in person is one thing, but when I need to transmit over insecure methods it makes me nervous.

Thanks for the response.

There are no senior discounts at the Vatican museums or at most sites in Rome.

The only reason they may want the ages is for discounts for kids. Kids under 6 get free admission and those between 6-18 get reduced entry as do students between 18 and 26 with school I.D. at the Vatican museums.

If you're concerned about sending the information via email why not just call them? You can ask why the information is needed and give it to them over the phone.

Donna

I know this question has been addressed at least once before in a posting in January. A tour guide replied that they need the information to prepare their legal invoices. I tried to copy and paste the link, but wasn't successful. I used the Search feature and searched "date of birth for tours."

By pricing for seniors, I didn't mean that Vatican tickets would be cheaper but maybe there is a senior price break for the private tour service they're looking at. Just speculation, of course, as I've no idea what tour company it is, and it is more likely that a lower price is available for children only. Either way, it would account for DOB request.

If providing this info via email troubles you, maybe you need to find a different travel agent that you can work with face-to-face.

I have no experience in what is required to visit the Vatican. I will be doing my first visit there on my next trip to Italy. Other than providing my passport info, via a secure web site, none of the specific things you mention were requested.

If you book directly with the Vatican, they require a date of birth.

http://biglietteriamusei.vatican.va/musei/tickets/do?action=booking

Thank you all for the replies and comments. I went ahead and sent my info via email and booked the tours.

We're leaving this Friday and are all very much looking forward to the trip!

Grazie!