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iPhone Driver's License Support Expands to More Californians
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When you present a phone to somebody, they _always_ grab it. Same with a microphone (try it sometime!). I don't want to have to pull my phone away from a cop when he grabs it. What's so bloody hard about handing him a normal driver license? Again, this is an answer to a question nobody asked.
iPhone users in California can now add their digital driver's licenses and IDs in the Apple Wallet app on iPhone and Apple Watch, with California expanding an ongoing test of the digital license feature.
Several MacRumors readers have reported seeing the California license as an option in the Wallet app, under the label "California mDL Pilot." Prior to now, only a limited number of people were seeing the option.
Wallet app integration is part of California's mobile driver's license effort, which kicked off a year ago. More than 500,000 people have already added a driver's license or ID to the California DMV Wallet app, where California tested the option before starting to roll it out to the Wallet app.
Apple announced California's Wallet license plans back in August, and said that it was working with California to bring IDs to Apple Wallet.
IDs and licenses stored in the Wallet app on iPhone or iPad can be used for TSA screenings at select airports (including SFO, LAX, and SJC) and for age verification at select stores. Right now, California's mobile wallet support is still in an early stage, and only 1.5 million participants are able to sign up.
California requires people to continue to carry a physical license or ID card because the digital license is not accepted by law enforcement, state government agencies, and most businesses.
Apple announced a new Wallet app that supported digital IDs back in 2022, but states have been slow to adopt the feature. So far, only Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Hawaii, and Ohio have implemented support. Apple said in 2022 that Connecticut, Iowa, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Utah are working on support, and today added that Montana, New Mexico, and West Virginia also plan to adopt the functionality.
Article Link: iPhone Driver's License Support Expands to More Californians
What good is this anyway? Are you going to hand a cop your phone if you get pulled over? I’m not.
Still can’t see how forking over my phone is better than showing an ID.
If we knew that a cop (or airline rep) was going to somehow scan the thing instead of grabbing our phones, it might be a different story.
People using mobile boarding passes has been a thing for 10+ years now. You're right there's a risk, but we would've heard stories of privacy issues by now with all the things we do on our phones.
OK, so we are expecting the cops to approach the window with a scanner??
And yes, I have used the digital boarding passes, don’t prefer that to the paper though. It’s really not solving any problem for me, rather keep my phone in my bag / pocket.
Then shouldn’t it show my entire last name? The reason the last name is appreciated is to only share pertinent information (bouncer at a club does not need to know my last name, only that I am over 21). If they don’t need to know my last name they don’t need to know my full middle name. And it looks funny this way.