STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- U.S. states are increasingly rolling out digitized versions of driver’s licenses that “go way beyond what a driver’s license is about”
- An international standard for mobile drivers’ licenses and mobile IDs was approved for publication August 18, 2021, clearing the way for global use
- Mobile IDs will act as a digital identity that will ultimately tie in to retail, health care, law enforcement and travel sectors
- Ultimately, the IDs will also act as vaccine passports, making it easy to display whether you’ve gotten a COVID-19 injection — and any other future injections that come about — in order to go about your daily life
- Some have speculated that the introduction of digital IDs and vaccine passports in the U.S. is laying the infrastructure for a social credit system like the one being used in China
Little by little, it’s becoming easier and more convenient to “present your papers” upon request. You’re accustomed to keeping your driver’s license with you, but states are increasingly rolling out digitized versions that “go way beyond what a driver’s license is about.”1 Arizona, for instance, released a mobile driver’s license (mDL) app in March 2021, and Eric Jorgensen, director of the motor vehicle division of Arizona’s Department of Transportation, told Government Technology:2
“I actually hate the term ‘mDL’ because it doesn’t recognize the power of what we’re doing here … The whole concept is that we’re providing a way to remotely authenticate a person, to provide a trusted digital identity that doesn’t exist today.
Once we provide that, we’re opening doors to enhanced government services. Also, the government can play a key role in facilitating commerce, providing a better citizen experience and providing for the security of that citizen …”
Mobile IDs Tied to Health Care, Law Enforcement
GET Group North America is working fervently to create “secure ID credentials,”3 which includes the release of an international standard for mobile driver’s licenses and mobile IDs (mID). The standards were approved for publication August 18, 2021, clearing the way for “global ID and driver’s license issuers to confidently deploy mDL solutions, and for verifiers around the world to implement or adopt mDL readers.”4