Apple Expands Digital ID Support to Web Browsers in iOS 26

[MacRumors]

Apple is adding a "Verify with Wallet on the Web" option in iOS 26 that can use a state-issued license or Digital ID to verify age and identity in a private and secure way. This is already an option in apps, but Apple is expanding it to the web through support for the W3C Digital Credentials API and the FIDO CTAP protocol.

Right now, purchasing alcohol, renting a car, or similar activities online can require users to upload a picture of their ID, but Apple's new system will replace that. Websites will be able to request digital credentials like name and date of birth without receiving unnecessary information. End users will be informed of how the data will be used, and whether it will be stored by the website asking for identity verification.

Apple's new web-based ID verification feature will work seamlessly in Safari on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, but it will also work with other browser apps and other operating systems that implement support. You can use your iPhone to scan a QR code in any browser on any system to share digital ID information with a website using Face ID authentication.

Verify with Wallet on the web works with state-issued IDs and licenses, and passports added through the new iOS 26 Digital ID feature could support online verification. Apple is also adding support for third-party apps that store licenses. Some states have digital ID systems that do not integrate with Apple Wallet, but licenses stored in these apps will still be able to be used for identity and age verification on the web. When initiating the verification process on a website, iPhone users will be able to select the Wallet app or a third-party app.

The process is end-to-end encrypted, so other parties are not able to read identity data, including browsers and operating systems. IDs are cryptographically signed, preventing the use of fake IDs.

Apple says that the first websites that will support the Verify with Wallet on the Web feature include Chime, Turo, Uber Eats, and U.S. Bank. The Arizona MVD, Georgia DDS, and Maryland MVA will add support for their digital ID apps.

The web verification process for IDs will launch this fall when iOS 26 debuts.

Article Link: Apple Expands Digital ID Support to Web Browsers in iOS 26

 

[zakarhino]

Long term should be really useful if it means the website only receives some kind of one time code type of thing to confirm identify details, similar to how Apple Pay's mechanism works.

Anything that means I don't need to take pictures of my ID and let that sit in some unknown server somewhere is a good thing.

 

[tennisproha]

This is fantastic! Hopefully it gets widespread adoption

 

[sw1tcher]

Apple is adding a "Verify with Wallet on the Web" option in iOS 26 that can use a state-issued license or Digital ID to verify age and identity in a private and secure way.

Websites will be able to request digital credentials like name and date of birth without receiving unnecessary information.

The process is end-to-end encrypted, so other parties are not able to read identity data, including browsers and operating systems. IDs are cryptographically signed, preventing the use of fake IDs.

So why can't Apple implement this for their App Store to comply with Ohio's and Texas' App Store law?

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[CapitalIdea]

Long term should be really useful if it means the website only receives some kind of one time code type of thing to confirm identify details, similar to how Apple Pay's mechanism works.

Anything that means I don't need to take pictures of my ID and let that sit in some unknown server somewhere is a good thing.

It definitely sounds like some kind of token system, which would be awesome and it likely integrates with any states that have onboarded for digital ID on Wallet.

 

[platinumaqua]

Most of the time the websites would only need the date of birth/is person over a certain age, but I'm not confident that website owners would ask for everything they can to build a better tracking profile.

 

[fractalus]

Digital ID along with Digital Currency will be the end of privacy and freedom for mankind.

 

[TheDailyApple]

So why can't Apple implement this for their App Store to comply with Ohio's and Texas' App Store law?

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Not all states support digital IDs yet.

 

[zarmanto]

Digital ID along with Digital Currency will be the end of privacy and freedom for mankind.

While I generally agree with the premise, let's be honest... privacy on the internet is mostly an illusion anyway.

 

[sw1tcher]

Not all states support digital IDs yet.

In addition to a digital ID, Apple says this feature supports physical IDs too. That is what they mean by "state-issued license," right?

Apple is adding a "Verify with Wallet on the Web" option in iOS 26 that can use a state-issued license or Digital ID to verify age and identity in a private and secure way.

 

[What_Is_George]

Digital ID along with Digital Currency will be the end of privacy and freedom for mankind.

I do agree to an extent. I do also think that verifying age like this, with the website just knowing that someone is old enough, is a WAY better option than uploading an ID to any website that would ask for it.

 

[MacHeritage]

Digital ID along with Digital Currency will be the end of privacy and freedom for mankind.

Yes, if people only knew and understood the consequences of them, Digital ID and Digital Currency would be dead immediately. The end result is you will not be able to do anything without the government's permission (whomever that is!). They will know everything and control your whole life with it. Currently, they do not.

Plus, cash is the only thing keeping the population of a country in control over the economy. Without it, the Banks and powers that be have absolute authority over the economy and the people have none.

Once those freedoms are gone, they won't be coming back.

I see Apple going along with whatever the government wants them to do. Apple wants to digitalize everything they can so people will use their products but they will be side-stepped later on when Digital ID and related moves onto the next step: biometric chips. Which is just around the corner. Cell phones and the like won't be needed any more for IDs etc.

 

[haemolysis]

Digital ID along with Digital Currency will be the end of privacy and freedom for mankind.

ID is already digital. You think the DMV (or whatever) stores your information in a leather-bound book that they have someone gather from the library? No. Your social security is in a database, your face is in a database, your life is in a database. And those databases are accessed digitally to verify you.

That's not changing.

However, new tech like tokenising, encrypting, masking details, data-attestation: all these sorts of modern updates are allowing us to validate our digital ID in a way that is more private. A way that doesn't require handing over a xerox. A way that can't be photocopied, memorised, and re-used. A way that restricts the information shared.

It's not the end of privacy. It's the start.

 

[displayblock]

Your social security is in a database, your face is in a database, your life is in a database. And those databases are accessed digitally to verify you.

Up until recently, all of those databases operated on separate secured services maintained by separate teams.

Now they're all being condensed into one central database created in a rush, making it easier to target. All the information the government has on you, subject to one single point of failure in their cybersecurity defenses.

Great opportunity for scammers too. Spin up a phishing site meant to entice everyone shafted by the end of the IRS's free DirectFile, then get a few to turn over their Digital ID.

For me, the main motivation I see for these government-supported digital ID efforts is two-fold:

1. To remove anonymity from the mainstream Internet. With the right laws in the right places, even more popular sites could be pressured to require visitors to provide their real government-issued ID information before entering/registering, thwarting attempts to use VPNs to conceal identity or location. (Think of the children!) Also could be valuable to tie your legal identity to existing data web trackers have collected on you.
2. To normalize carrying your citizenship papers everywhere you go. Since it's so convenient, it becomes suspicious if you carry a phone without a government-supported digital ID. Expect more checkpoints and reliance on government ID to get anything done. (Papers, please!)

 

[Sophisticatednut]

Up until recently, all of those databases operated on separate secured services maintained by separate teams.

Now they're all being condensed into one central database created in a rush, making it easier to target. All the information the government has on you, subject to one single point of failure in their cybersecurity defenses.

Great opportunity for scammers too. Spin up a phishing site meant to entice everyone shafted by the end of the IRS's free DirectFile, then get a few to turn over their Digital ID.

For me, the main motivation I see for these government-supported digital ID efforts is two-fold:

1. To remove anonymity from the mainstream Internet. With the right laws in the right places, even more popular sites could be pressured to require visitors to provide their real government-issued ID information before entering/registering, thwarting attempts to use VPNs to conceal identity or location. (Think of the children!) Also could be valuable to tie your legal identity to existing data web trackers have collected on you.
2. To normalize carrying your citizenship papers everywhere you go. Since it's so convenient, it becomes suspicious if you carry a phone without a government-supported digital ID. Expect more checkpoints and reliance on government ID to get anything done. (Papers, please!)

Well if they actually centralize it similarly how Most EU nations have done it then it should be of no concern.

Plus I prefer it not being used to remove anonymity from the mainstream internet, but make it easier to verify with tokens that you’re above the required age or even a citizen of said country

 

[ranmasaotomes]

Or indeed the rest of the world,

Have had an app for drivers licenses where I am in Australia since pre covid.

So why can't Apple implement this for their App Store to comply with Ohio's and Texas' App Store law?

Utah Passes Child Safety Law Requiring Apple to Verify User Age

Utah today passed the App Store Accountability Act, a law that requires mobile app stores from Apple and Google to verify the age of users rather...

www.macrumors.com

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Texas Governor Greg Abbott today signed into law the App Store Accountability Act, which will require Apple and Google to verify the age of App Store...

www.macrumors.com