Oklahoma mobile driver’s license program moves into high gear
18 September, 2019
category: Corporate, Digital ID, Government, Transit
Add the Oklahoma mobile driver’s license to the list of pioneering state-issued IDs. According to reports from local media, the state is beta testing its own mobile driver’s license program, with hopes that a full program can be rolled out this fall, perhaps in October.
Mobile IDs can offer more benefits than their analog ancestors, and that includes more citizen privacy.
Oklahoma is home to some 4 million people, of whom about 3 million are of driving age, according to U.S. Census and other estimates. For these tests, the state wants at least 5,000 people to take part – with some reports saying that 10,000 might ultimately participate.
Oklahoma mobile driver’s license process
As one report put it, the mobile driver’s licenses are designed to allow “Oklahoma drivers to scan their license to have a digital copy of their ID on their smartphones. You will be able to use the Mobile ID for everything from buying alcohol, to getting pulled over by the police.” As that report also noted, “when you sign up for Mobile ID through the app, you will take a picture of the front and back of your license; you will also take a selfie. (The state’s Department of Public Safety) will use that selfie and information to validate your ID on your phone. On the app, the selfie will move, and there’s also a digital watermark that helps verify the license is legitimate.”
The company helping to fuel this mobile driver’s license effort is IDEMIA, which already provides the state with its “traditional” driver’s licenses, along with 34 other states.
As these developments from Oklahoma indicate, the future of mobile ID is being shaped right now in the various states – to say nothing of federally-backed efforts in the broader digital ID space. Physical IDs are not going away, but mobile IDs can offer more benefits than their analog ancestors, and that includes more citizen privacy.
“In well-designed mobile ID systems, no personally identifiable information is stored in the cloud service,” Darrell Geusz, Senior Director of Product Management, Digital Identity for IDEMIA, previously said. “Identity data only stays in two places – on file with the government system of record and on your phone. In addition, the user must have the ability to consent to what information is being shared and when.”