You should look up exigent circumstances, it seems to be applied pretty liberally at times. Yes there is nothing to prevent that as you say. There is also the sheer number of data breaches that have happened, and continue to happen every day to consider. Being in cyber security, I have learned to never trust anything or anyone.So now we're down the rabbit hole.
Presently - without digital DL - what's to prevent the LEO from unlocking your phone by holding it up to your face without warning before you think to close your eyes?
Apart from that pesky 4th amendment and the need for a probable-cause based search warrant that is...
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Apple Plans to Expand iPhone Driver's Licenses to These 7 U.S. States
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I'm in Canada and if available I would use it every day. The only reason I now take a wallet with me is for my driver's license. With bank card, credit cards and phone-as-a-key all on the iPhone, all I need is for my license to be on the phone for it to be the only thing I take with me when I leave the house.
LOL - yes in early days of Apple Pay there were places which took NFC but didn't realize it. A lot of places didn't take NFC though -- interestingly the small stores tended to switch over faster than the big ones.
As for liquor stores and bars, haven't had to show ID for a while now thanks to greying hair and less-than-youthful appearance.
You do bring up the aspect where folks - particularly young ladies - may be safer since they're not presenting their home address to whomever checks their ID for DOB.
I'm aware of those. And that some LEO's abuse matters.
The point was that they can get into your phone even you didn't enable/use a digital DL.
Though in either case, if you have any reason to suspect something might not go well then hard-lock your phone pressing side button & volume up three seconds, thus forcing passcode instead of faceID
Yes, the address! I worked in the nightlife industry for many years and everyone in the business has heard of the bouncer in Toronto that followed a girl who rejected him after he let her into the bar, tried to buy her a drink and then showed up at her home after his shift. I just stopped seeing him at the door after many years and the word spread on what he'd done.
Digital ID that provides only the information that is necessary, while also informing the user clearly what they're providing, is such an improvement to security and privacy, not the paranoia that conspiracy theorists and misinformed critics are screaming about.
For those having a hard time imagining how this works and to quiet the paranoia in this thread, here you go:
It doesn't unlock your phone, you don't hand your phone unlocked to anybody, nobody even needs to look at your phone because you're not showing them a picture of your driver's license, you're authorizing access to specific information from your State's database.
You tap the terminal, it tells you what it's requesting, and then you agree to send just that information with a Face ID confirmation, just like Apple Pay. Your phone remains locked and in your possession.
It doesn't unlock your phone, you don't hand your phone unlocked to anybody, nobody even needs to look at your phone because you're not showing them a picture of your driver's license, you're authorizing access to specific information from your State's database.
You tap the terminal, it tells you what it's requesting, and then you agree to send just that information with a Face ID confirmation, just like Apple Pay. Your phone remains locked and in your possession.
Funny, the first instruction in the video is "unlock your phone". This makes it less paranoia and more fact-based concern. Personally I'm more concerned with digitizing more PID information than anything.
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In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps.
Below, we outline which U.S. states and territories offer the feature, and additional states that have committed to rolling it out in the future. 2025 just began, and many of the states listed below will likely roll out the feature throughout the year.
Supported States
The feature is also available in Puerto Rico.
- Arizona (since March 2022)
- Maryland (since May 2022)
- Colorado (since November 2022)
- Georgia (since May 2023)
- Ohio (since July 2024)
- Hawaii (since August 2024)
- California (since September 2024)
- Iowa (since October 2024)
- New Mexico (since December 2024)
Future States
Apple said the following states have "signed on" to adopt the feature in the future:
The feature will also work with Japan's My Number Card in the future, according to Apple.
- Montana
- West Virginia
- Connecticut
- Kentucky
- Mississippi
- Oklahoma
- Utah
Participating Airports
Apple Wallet app IDs can be used at select TSA checkpoints within select U.S. airports:
Apple says travelers should refer to TSA checkpoint signage to confirm availability of the feature, and the TSA's website offers more details.
- Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI)
- Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA)
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)
- Denver International Airport (DEN)
- Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL)
- Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport (CVG)
- John Glenn Columbus International Airport (CMH)
- San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
- San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC)
- Los Angeles International (LAX)
- Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL)
- Des Moines International Airport (DSM)
- Eastern Iowa Airport (CID)
- Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ)
- Lea County Regional Airport (HOB)
- Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (SJU)
In addition to participating TSA checkpoints, Apple in September announced that users would soon be able to present an Apple Wallet ID for CLEAR member enrollment at airports. Apple Wallet IDs can also be used to show proof of age or identity at select businesses and venues in the U.S., although Apple does not maintain a list of specific locations for this.
Article Link: Apple Plans to Expand iPhone Driver's Licenses to These 7 U.S. States
I have a serious inquiry regarding iPhone drivers licenses.
1. Does this replace in any way the physical hard copy license or makes the physical license invalid or expired, since legally you cannot have 2 copies?
2. Does Apple have an EASY viable way to NOT keep you locked into their platform in case you ever CHOOSE to leave Apple's ecosystem entirely?
3. In the event that a currently supported iPhone (such as the iPhone 12 / 13 mini) fall out of iOS support (which will be in 1 and 2 major iterations respectively soon according to today's date) ... and also soon say in a few years that iCloud data gets auto PURGED by Apple [ November 2024 30 day warning is pure ignorant BS *] ... what happens in such a situation to your license? Does it get purchaed or can you migrate to another platform or forced to upgrade?
* Very sensitive photos/message from my late mother are now GONE just as I was shunned by Tech Support whom carelessly greets me with 'how can I help you today" when my ticket explicitly states HOW they can help me and they rep just hung up and pushed for my iCloud PW to be reset - when I KNOW the password! I'm livid with kiddies and this generic non-reading nor understanding my situation as I considered coning back to iOS. Data is still on my now unsupported iPhone 4 and is my ONLY Apple device - ALL I NEED is to be validated to have my SMS MFA number UPDATED to recover the LOCKED status so that I can back up and migrate to my existing phone and access my iCloud account again. I'm 60 days out from purchasing a Mac Mini M4 Pro. ]
video states SCAN your phone when clearly its an NFC reader that invokes the license share sheet.
No need to be ignorant to someone who's unfamiliar as you've shown you make mistakes too and can learn. It costs nothing to be compassionate yet grants you so much more power.
You reap what you sow, and Karma is a very vengeful b*tch!
I will never hand my phone to a cop. I’ll stick to carrying paper copies of my info, thank you.
Speaking for GA:
1 - the digital DL is a supplement, not replacement. you retain your physical DL
2 - that's a far bigger question not relevant to this discussion about digital DL, but the short answer is few platforms have any interest in making it easy for you to leave their environment
3 - irrelevant, see #1.
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Why would you hand the LEO your phone?
The screen just shows your first name and last initial. What would they do with that?
If they don’t have the proper NFC reader you give your paper license
I agree that kindness goes a long way but to be honest I’m very familiar with how this technology works. I teach it every semester and am aware of issues surrounding nfc and it’s limited protections and the capacity to abuse the information that is being shared. I am also familiar with the number of data breaches that happen every year and am opposed to digitizing PII excessively.
Download a special app, pay money, but I haven't seen confirmation TSA will accept it, and LE can demand a physical license.
Japan has this tech - because they were willing to invest in infrastructure and asked Apple to support it in the base OS.
Most countries don't care because they don't use driving privileges cards as a form of bespoke national ID.
It can absolutely be used in a traffic stop. Law Enforcement just can't afford the handheld readers on a reasonable timeframe. TSA is able to put it in airports because they do so within a small number of fixed terminals, and even then they have a slow roll-out as they upgrade to the new terminals.
But it is designed to not be acceptable as a form of ID without you doing a tap - kinda like how I can't show the card picture in my Apple Wallet as a substitute for Apple Pay.
I've flown with my passport, and only pulled it out because the hotel required a form of ID. But a lot of airports do not support mobile driving licenses yet, and even if TSA supports it, the counter for the airlines do not.