10/11/2021

Your Driver’s License Could Soon Live on Your Phone

Here’s what you should know

Smartphones have become convenient places to store theater tickets, boarding passes, credit cards and even proof of vaccination. Now, after years of debate and testing, you may soon be able to carry digital versions of your driver’s license on your phone, too.

More than 20 states have either considered, tested or already launched digital versions of driver’s licenses that live on smartphones. And tech giant Apple plans to make digital licenses a key feature in its iOS 15 smartphone software in “late 2021." So far, the state governments of Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma and Utah are signaling support for the feature.

This means there’s a good chance you’ll eventually be able to flash your phone to police officers when you get caught doing 30 mph in a school zone, or as proof of your age when you step into a bar. In some cases, you’ll even be able to show your phone to Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents in an airport security line. Carrying your physical license or state ID with you is still a good idea, but soon, you may not have to worry about the consequences of leaving it at home. Nonetheless, there are also downsides to these convenient digital licenses — and some of them are serious.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Washington Post.