I just returned from travels to Munich, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Switzerland and Italy with a group. Our passport numbers were sent in advance to each hotel by the travel agent except in Milan, Italy; and I'm not sure about that yet.
When we arrived, the desk asked all of us to turn in our passports and they were each scanned to their computer. The reason given was that the passports had to be turned over to the local police by law.
I have never had this happen before and was very concerned about my passport being scanned to the hotels personal computers. Others in the group were equally concerned. Our addresses may not be on the passport but there is certainly enough information for a hacker to find out more. If hackers have been smart enough to break into the Department of Defense, I do fear they could get access to other personal information pretty easily.
I could understand showing the desk our passports for identity but not scanning them to their system. Needless to say, I was pretty upset. I have tried to find a reason for this that makes sense.
When entering a Euro nation, our passports are scanned at customs to the international or Euro systems and I found it difficult to believe that the Italian Police couldn't find you in their or some system if you committed a crime or were accused of something.
As American citizens, we are required to protect our passports from being stolen and, if they are, we are expected to report that to a local consulate or embassy as soon as possible. So, why would this be OK?