Apple's iPhone Driver's License Feature Now Available in 11 U.S. States

[jaytv111]

Already changed in some states? Which? If and when they do, what terminal will an officer bring to the window of your car? Are these states going to issue iphones to all officers to read your wallet?

If the officer is going to carry something to read the apple wallet, better if they have a device that works like Apple Face ID and simply scan your face. That's what TSA pre-check is already piloting at some airports.

Georgia passed a law over the summer to study the technology and have police accept it by 2 years from then. Montana said their officers should accept it by years end.

Still remains to be seen because they can always delay.

The officer brings a phone. Could also scan a traditional ID card too. One device for both. Phone just needs an app on it that takes NFC read and submits to the back end.

I know about facial recognition at airports, but I don’t know if they have a mobile reader for facial recognition yet. The airport version is like a mini photobooth. Plus some privacy-types are against the government having your biometrics on file.

 

[Robert.Walter]

Google told me yesterday that DTW Detroit also accepts.

 

[jaytv111]

Can anyone who knows, help me to understand the difference between this and a dedicated app? I'm in MO and we have a separate app to achieve this, so I don't think we will ever truly support the wallet driver license thing. But - is there a particular reason for MO not to? I know when I talked to one person they had some floating icon thing that they claimed meant it was authentic; how does the wallet app compare?

I got the app but still carry my ID everywhere, so... it didn't really change anything.

A dedicated app is what states use, but it has a barcode and it's basically the ID card but on phone. Apple's system uses NFC and it's a tokenized approach. Unlimited copies can be made of barcodes, but Apple's system is using a similar approach to Apple Pay, a key on the phone never leaves the phone and crypto operations prove the key is present, which prevents copying to other devices.

Currently states don't accept the Apple version, but Georgia and Montana have the potential to because they said they will in the future accept the Apple system.

The feds (TSA) accept the Apple system for its higher security, but it also has its roadblocks to further deployment. When the passport version launches on iOS theoretically it means everyone in the USA could get it (but they need a passport), that could help boost adoption by airports and maybe bring it to other federal facilities (they don't accept it currently).

As for state adoption of the Apple system (which I believe Android has a similar system too, they already accept passports), the states often don't want to invest in new infrastructure, and it does require new IT purchases to be made to deploy the wallet IDs, there's an additional token system built on top of the ID database, the token system controls access between device and requestor. A simple barcode can go right into the ID database itself, no tokenization.

 

[Permanent Sigh]

Why would you voluntarily hand over your phone to the police?

You don’t. Every single time a story like this comes up a misinformed comment like this invariably follows…

 

[Fallforward]

Georgia passed a law over the summer to study the technology and have police accept it by 2 years from then. Montana said their officers should accept it by years end.

Still remains to be seen because they can always delay.

The officer brings a phone. Could also scan a traditional ID card too. One device for both. Phone just needs an app on it that takes NFC read and submits to the back end.

I know about facial recognition at airports, but I don’t know if they have a mobile reader for facial recognition yet. The airport version is like a mini photobooth. Plus some privacy-types are against the government having your biometrics on file.

You make a lot of good points. It will be interesting to see what happens at the police level.

One quibble, the scanner looked like an iPad on pedestal next to the TSA person. Just had to face it for a second and done. It looked similar to what United used when boarding some international flights going back a couple years. Regarding privacy, at this point face scan might work only with those who already agreed to their profile online by signing up for services like PreCheck, Global Entry and even uploading a copy of their passport to certian airlines to make international flights simpler.

"Privacy-types" certianly exist. They can't get TSA Pre-Check for domestic or international travel, or US passports without sharing the same data, and more such as fingerprints - as well as having foreign governments capture/scan and and store that data upon arrival.

 

[dontwalkhand]

Louisiana was the first state in the U.S. to offer a digital driver’s license (via LA Wallet) — long before any of the above states.

Yes, but now Louisiana seems invested in their own app (sunk cost fallacy?), that they don’t want to put it in Apple Wallet at all.

 

[Fallforward]

You don’t. Every single time a story like this comes up a misinformed comment like this invariably follows…

You are correct for the wrong reason. No officer in any state has the requisite NFC capability.