Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Illuminated

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 25, 2008
1,081
358
Denver
I'm honestly really excited for the time that we can have ID's and driver licenses in our Apple Wallet right on our phones. We already can do car insurance, credit cards, and tickets in Apple Wallet, but why not ID's?!

When do you think this will happen? I'm hoping more states and local governments will implement this.

I can't wait for the day when I don't have to carry a wallet on me.
 

DeanL

macrumors 65816
May 29, 2014
1,297
1,237
London
I'm honestly really excited for the time that we can have ID's and driver licenses in our Apple Wallet right on our phones. We already can do car insurance, credit cards, and tickets in Apple Wallet, but why not ID's?!

When do you think this will happen? I'm hoping more states and local governments will implement this.

I can't wait for the day when I don't have to carry a wallet on me.

Probably because it will require a standard for the verification of the ID. And a looong time before all the places that requires ID adopt the system. Don't even get me started on cross-country compatibility...

Viable electronic IDs won't appear before at least 10-15 years.
 

Snapperjw

macrumors 6502
Oct 8, 2007
331
249
If stopped by the police, would
you be willing to surrender your phone for identification purposes?

This is a really good point. Nothing stopping the police doing a digital strip search which is a worry in the UK when the police access your phone, even if you're the victim of crime.
 
  • Like
Reactions: RudySnow

Itinj24

Contributor
Nov 8, 2017
4,480
2,562
New York
This is a really good point. Nothing stopping the police doing a digital strip search which is a worry in the UK when the police access your phone, even if you're the victim of crime.
I’m actually a Police Officer and a techy so while I would love to eventually eliminate having to carry around a wallet, I don’t agree with surrendering a cell phone for something as small as a traffic infraction. I think it could work if the Police Officer carries an NFC device or such and is able to receive just the identification/registration/insurance credentials from the motorist’s cell phone.
 

MozMan68

macrumors demi-god
Jun 29, 2010
6,074
5,162
South Cackalacky
Wallet allows access on a locked screen now for items like boarding passes. I'm sure you could simply set it up that way for driver's licenses...always available.

The license's "bar code" would be able to be read by the officer right there by his own device for a quick review. Many states are already piloting it or have plans to introduce including Louisiana, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, Tennessee, Utah and Wyoming.
 

MozMan68

macrumors demi-god
Jun 29, 2010
6,074
5,162
South Cackalacky

...and the best part is that it will actually INCREASE privacy.

While the example they show is an image of a traditional license, the user will either only have their photo and a QR code on the screen to scan, or as the article mentions, the user will scan a card to transmit their data.

For places like stores, bars, etc. that are only trying to verify age, that is the only confirmation they will receive...no address information, no actual date of birth...only police officers would have access to the complete info.
 

mlody

macrumors 68000
Nov 11, 2012
1,601
1,227
Windy City
If stopped by the police, would
you be willing to surrender your phone for identification purposes?


If implemented right you wouldn't have to hand off your phone to police. I would expect police to be equipped with nfc or some other type of reader. the use case for identification should be similar to paying with ApplePay; hence no access to phone and data.
 

Itinj24

Contributor
Nov 8, 2017
4,480
2,562
New York
If implemented right you wouldn't have to hand off your phone to police. I would expect police to be equipped with nfc or some other type of reader. the use case for identification should be similar to paying with ApplePay; hence no access to phone and data.
I’m actually a Police Officer and a techy so while I would love to eventually eliminate having to carry around a wallet, I don’t agree with surrendering a cell phone for something as small as a traffic infraction. I think it could work if the Police Officer carries an NFC device or such and is able to receive just the identification/registration/insurance credentials from the motorist’s cell phone.

I hate quoting myself, but yes, I already addressed this.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mlody and MozMan68

cdcastillo

macrumors 68000
Dec 22, 2007
1,714
2,672
The cesspit of civilization
I'm honestly really excited for the time that we can have ID's and driver licenses in our Apple Wallet right on our phones. We already can do car insurance, credit cards, and tickets in Apple Wallet, but why not ID's?!

When do you think this will happen? I'm hoping more states and local governments will implement this.

I can't wait for the day when I don't have to carry a wallet on me.
In Mexico’s northern state of Nuevo León, this is already a reality for the drivers license. I do not know how practical the thing is in reality, since I don’t live there anymore, but it exists and the DMV offers it when you go to renew your license
 

MozMan68

macrumors demi-god
Jun 29, 2010
6,074
5,162
South Cackalacky
The DMV here in Alabama offers it. I've had my driver's license in my Apple Wakey for several years now. But it's not accepted anywhere because nobody knows it's a thing.

Well, it's not accepted anywhere" due to ignorance, not because it isn't a legal form of identification in the state.

I'm really surprised at that in Alabama /s ;)
 
  • Like
Reactions: AlliFlowers

theapplehead

macrumors 6502a
Dec 17, 2018
785
929
North Carolina
I'm honestly really excited for the time that we can have ID's and driver licenses in our Apple Wallet right on our phones. We already can do car insurance, credit cards, and tickets in Apple Wallet, but why not ID's?!

When do you think this will happen? I'm hoping more states and local governments will implement this.

I can't wait for the day when I don't have to carry a wallet on me.
OMG. Not kidding, I was just thinking about this the other day. That would be such a convenient feature to have. I think third-party app developers should try to jump on this before Apple solely because once Apple does, no one else will really have a chance. I am excited to anticipate how this will play out in the next 10-20 years.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.