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Software United States Cellphones Technology

Louisiana Adopts Digital Driver's Licenses (ieee.org) 151

Posted by BeauHD from the surprisingly-progressive-for-Louisiana dept.
Louisiana is rolling out a new digital driver's license app, called LA Wallet, that will let retailers digitally verify the age of their customers, if required. "According to IEEE Spectrum, Louisiana's Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control is expected to announce that bars, restaurants, grocery stores and other retails are allowed to accept LA Wallet as proof of age, according to the app's developer, Envoc." From the report: The Baton Rouge-based company launched LA Wallet in June, after two years of collaboration with state officials. But so far only law enforcement officers making routine traffic stops are required to accept the digital driver's license. Next week's announcement would greatly broaden the scope of the app's use. About 71,000 people have downloaded LA Wallet so far, says Calvin Fabre, founder and president of Envoc. The app costs $5.99 in the Google Play and Apple App stores. Users buy it, create an account with some basic information from their physical driver's license, and create a password. That's it. No biometric security -- like iris scans or facial recognition -- required. The app links back to Louisiana's Office of Motor Vehicles database, which completes the digital license with the user's photo and additional information. Any changes to the license, like a suspension or renewal, are updated immediately in the app with a wireless network connection.

To present the license -- say, to a cop during a traffic stop -- the driver (hoping his phone battery isn't dead) opens the app with a password, shows the cop the digital license image, and authenticates it by pressing and holding the screen to reveal a security seal. The license can be flipped over to show a scannable bar code on the back. There's also a handy security feature that allows anyone with the LA Wallet app to authenticate another person's Louisiana digital driver's license. It allows the bar patron to select which information she would like to reveal to the bartender -- in this case, simply the fact that she is over 21. That information is displayed on the phone with a photo and embedded QR code. The bartender scans the code with her app, which tells her that the woman seated on the other side of the bar is indeed over 21. None of the customer's personal information, such as her name, birth date, or address, is displayed or stored on the bartender's phone.
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Louisiana Adopts Digital Driver's Licenses More

Louisiana Adopts Digital Driver's Licenses

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  • Clever (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 13, 2018 @07:08PM (#57801162)

    Here's my unlocked phone, officer.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by ELCouz ( 1338259 )
      Mod AC up! Insightful +9999

    • Here's my unlocked phone, officer.

      Obvious solution: You could make the digital license the wallpaper on your lock screen.

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by Anonymous Coward

        Another obvious solution is to print out your digital license, laminate it, and keep it in your wallet.

        • Re:Clever (Score:5, Insightful)

          by novakyu ( 636495 ) <novakyu@novakyu.net> on Thursday December 13, 2018 @09:27PM (#57801564) Homepage

          Wouldn't it be easier to have DMV print it on plastic for you?

          • Wouldn't it be easier to have DMV print it on plastic for you?

            It's a crazy idea but it just might work!

          • It sure would seem so.

            Maybe there's something I'm missing, but this appears to be one of the stupidest ideas I've read about all year.

            • Maybe there's something I'm missing, but this appears to be one of the stupidest ideas I've read about all year.

              Oh no, you've got it all wrong! This was very well thought out.

              You see, corrupt DMV workers and LEOs were not capable of selling personal data fast enough to meet demand the old way, now they can receive far more in payoffs and can blame the loss of confidential data on "hackers"...probably Russian. /s

              Strat

              • I was making an alcohol purchase the other at a store here in LA.

                They asked for my ID, and I gave my license, and rather than just look at the date/age...they freakin' scanned it before I could say anything.

                I'd never had that happened before and saw they were using some type bar code on back.

                I"m gonna have to get some tape or something to cover that, as that I don't want them able to put that info in their database.

                Anyone else run into this?

                I"m certainly NOT going to get the electronic version on my

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by rtb61 ( 674572 )

            Officer, officer someone just stole my phone. Officer and who are you? How about, we are a private corporation with the right to deny business with anyone at any time, the right to turn people into non-people. Electronic ID and electronic payments with cash banned, corporations with the right to decide who does exist and who does not, what could go wrong (well we all know, as far as those psychopathic cunts are concerned, what could go right, mwa hah hah)

    • Your comment doesnt make any sense. If you read the website, it says it's a hands off experience. LE cant go through your phone without a warrant. Additionally, depending upon the type of phone you have, you can pin the app to the screen where you can hand them the phone and they are only able to interact with whatever app/screen you pin to your device. If they try to exit out of it, it goes back to the lock screen. On Android its called Screen Pinning and on iOS its called Guided Access. Super useful featu

  • La Wallet (Score:5, Funny)

    by jfdavis668 ( 1414919 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @07:11PM (#57801172)
    How very French of them.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      Hackers Paradise is now open for business...

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Toshito ( 452851 )

      The only problem is that the french word for Wallet:"Portefeuille" is masculine.

      So it should be "Le Wallet"

      "La" is feminine.

  • it's a scam.. (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward

    to get people to willingly hand over their UNLOCKED phones to law enforcement.

  • the phone needs to be unlocked? (Score:1, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward

    If the mobile device needs to be unlocked to present the information (regardless of the status of the app and license itself), then in many cases Law Enforcement has already bypassed the initial roadblock to getting a user to unlock his/her phone to access other data on it.

    If, on the other hand, this is available from the lock screen (with the mentioned additional authentication), much like a payment card via Apple Wallet or similar capabilities, then it's pretty convenient without an obvious security circu

  • Big Brother (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Joviex ( 976416 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @07:31PM (#57801234)
    Tracks you, tracks your purchases for gov, and provides "unlockable" phones for cops when pulled over.

    How about a big fat NO FUCKING THANKS

    Good times.
    • Good part is that it will become a lot easier to "clone" the license of your 21-year old friend who looks almost like you. No biometrics required :D Maybe this will finally be the death rattle of the idiotic drinking age in the US.

  • Comment removed (Score:3)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @07:37PM (#57801254)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • Now that's sanity.

      In Missouri, to renew my license, I needed:
      1. Old license
      2. Proof of identity (I had my original SS card and valid passport - the passport could have been expired)
      3. Valid insurance card
      4. Recent bill with my name and address (90 days old or less)

      It was stupid but I came prepared and it did go quickly. I was given a full size sheet of paper as a temporary license, which I laminated and carried around in the car.

      I almost want to get a tatoo of my birth certificate and SS card. Yeah, thi

  • Instead of spending a lot of time and effort creating a system to enforce Puritanical drinking age regulations, lower the drinking age to 18 and don't require people "show their papers" just to be able to buy a pint of beer. It works like this in most of the non-Islamic world, and the world outside the US mostly gets by just fine. Governments spend a lot more time than is sane trying to enforce rules against victimless crimes.
    • They tried that, kids got drunk and killed people behind the wheel. Try again.
      • So strictly enforce drunk driving laws for new drivers: 0.01% BAC = license loss till 21. Or just require self-driving cars.

    • to get rid of Puritanical thinking, you have to reduce the power of the current Puritan party. that's the one that starts with an R.

      the Puritans were uptight, religious nutjobs that even overly religious europe said 'good riddance!' to. the R's match that the closest.

      they gave in on liquor but they are still fighting the pot battle (and losing, really badly, country-wide).

    • It used to be that some states had 18 and some had 21 as the drinking age. Shockingly, there was a lot of drunk driving one the borders between those states. So, they raised the 18 states to 21 to prevent all the DUIs.

      Why didn't they force the 21 states to lower it to 18? Because the federal government cannot really force states to make stuff legal, but can to make things illegal.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by jbengt ( 874751 )

        It used to be that some states had 18 and some had 21 as the drinking age. Shockingly, there was a lot of drunk driving one the borders between those states. So, they raised the 18 states to 21 to prevent all the DUIs.

        It was the opposite in my experience living in Chicago. Wisconsin had an 18 year drinking age before Illinois. When Illinois lowered the drinking age for beer and wine to 19 a few years later, one of the reasons cited was all of the drunk driving between Wisconsin and Illinois. But it didn

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Agripa ( 139780 )

      Hey now, those court rooms and prisons are not going to fill themselves.

  • Usual privacy policy... (Score:3)

    by bagofbeans ( 567926 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @07:44PM (#57801278)

    The LA WALLET Application... Privacy Policy describes what personal data we obtain through the Application and how we use, store and share that information... note that ENVOC may change the terms of its Privacy Policy at any time without prior notice to you

  • Why? What problem are they trying to solve? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by schwit1 ( 797399 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @07:49PM (#57801292)

    How is this better than a physical document? This looks more like an attempt at showing off how cutting edge they are.

    Our K-12 schools are shite but we issue digital driver's license.

    • It's worse -- it's arguably easier to clone, since it doesn't have security features of a plastic license. As far as phoning home to DMV to verify, a plastic license can also have a scannable barcode.

      Then again, anything that weakens security is a good thing IMHO. US drinking age laws are a stupid joke. Too much time, money, and effort are spent in enforcing them. May as well turn them into a COMPLETE joke while we're at it.

      The more holes in the system, the better.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Xenx ( 2211586 )
        Honestly, it's idiocy to want to let teens drink. It is better for them, developmentally, to not be drinking at that age. That doesn't even cover the fact that their age bracket is more prone to binge drinking and taking unnecessary risks even without alcohol. While the law may not be perfect, we have a much lower drinking and binge drinking rate among teens in the US vs Europe. The law also has greatly reduced the number of drinking related hospital visits and traffic accidents for that bracket.
        • Honestly, it's idiocy to want to control every fucking iota of people's lives, you little statist snit. Outcomes (life expectancies and other measures of health) are generally better in Europe than the US. Why? Because a controlled society is a stressed society, and a stressed society is an unhealthy one. Let people have their vices, don't try to micro-manage.

          • Re: (Score:1)

            by Xenx ( 2211586 )
            At least I'm not the one that has to deride someone to feel better about myself. For those that might feel I did target him, I specifically targeted the idea and not the person. Smart people aren't smart 100% of the time. I gave him the benefit of the doubt and only said the idea was idiocy, which apparently I shouldn't have.

            As to the actual issue, it isn't a matter of controlling people. I already covered a number of the reasons for why it should remain in place, that have nothing to do with trying to con
            • There are always "good reasons" for wanting to micro-manage people's lives. It doesn't make it right or acceptable to do so. Fuck off, statist.

              • Re: (Score:2)

                by Xenx ( 2211586 )
                If you have a legitimate argument to make, by all means... go ahead. Otherwise, stop making yourself look like an idiot.
                • I have a legitimate argument to make -- if people aren't micro-managed "for their own good", they end up being happier, less stressed, and healthier as a result. Look at outcomes (life expectancy, general health) in the US vs most of Europe, and you'll see this is the case. Should we also ban things like bicycling or skiing under 21 because under-21s "aren't fully mature" and might be hurt?

                  • Re: (Score:2)

                    by Xenx ( 2211586 )
                    Correlation does not equal causation. Three of the major causes for our lower life expectancy: drug poisoning(alcohol included) , gun related injuries, and auto accidents. Accidents were greatly reduced when the drinking age was raised to 21. This was a near immediate change, so not predominately due to outside factors. So, that is a improvement to our expectancy in this case. That leaves drugs and gun related injuries. I don't know how many people turn to drugs due to stress caused/increased by all the law
                    • You assume that I actually have a problem with a greater number of drunk driving deaths or more addiction. I frankly don't. I'd rather live in a loosely-controlled but less safe society than a more-controlled but safer one. I'm not a coward.

                    • Re: (Score:2)

                      by Xenx ( 2211586 )
                      I don't assume you have a problem with it. I just know most people have a problem with it. At least when it specifically comes to the drinking age, 86%(if I recall the number correctly) agree with it.
                    • 86% of Dumbericans are Puritanical dolts and bootlicking authoritarian scum.

    • One major problem solved... (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Actually, I do RTFA ( 1058596 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @08:13PM (#57801370)

      It prevents bars from using mandatory ID checks to build databases of customers... which most "bar code verifier" stations do when bouncers check ID. That level of access control is an objectively good thing.

      There are many other problems (for instance, this app probably uses that to record how many times you go to bars, and syncs your phone to real name in a way that is sold to FB) that are added. But, you know, one step forward, four steps back.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AHuxley ( 892839 )
      Illegal migrants using one granted "state" ID to build a federal ID and get more services and support from a city/state/federal US gov.
      Criminals trying to create a new past with a new state ID.
      People who need a new state ID for new fraud and deception attempts.

      A state ID in different parts of the USA was a great way for illegal migrants and other criminals to work on getting services, support and more US ID.

      • How does this "solve" anything of that type? Plastic ID can already be "verified" with the appropriate agency, but generally requires appearance in person to obtain. This doesn't require a personal appearance, just obtaining the appropriate credentials to log in to the app, nor is it biometric.

        This is actually LESS secure than a paper ID. This being said, with the US justice and immigration systems being as fucked up and harsh as they are, I actually support criminals being able to escape justice and ill

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by AHuxley ( 892839 )
          A new ID system might just escape some of the past strong city/state privacy laws that protected US citizens from deeper state/federal database sharing .
          A "new" digital method could see a lot more new sharing of data at a city, sate and federal level allowing for the discovery of illegal migrates and other criminals.
          Criminals and illegal migrants who still expected a city and state "ID" to still be politically part of a "Sanctuary city" and would be an easy path to further build fake US citizenship ID.

          T
          • So you're against protecting US citizens' privacy. Nice to know -- are the Russians or the Chinese paying you to troll on here?

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by AHuxley ( 892839 )
              Past efforts at state ID systems saw the problems with sanctuary city ID, use by illegal migrants and fraud.
              The new systems should help detect illegal migrants and prevent further criminal use of a new ID.
              US citizens' privacy will be ok as they are not criminals, illegal migrants.
              • A "criminal" is what a bunch of old fucks who managed to con their way into office or onto a judge's bench say is a criminal. You're a good citizen today, but you might become a criminal tomorrow. Thus, I'm all for making the job of the government harder and more onerous. The more cracks in the system there are, the harder it is for them to become completely overbearing.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by mysidia ( 191772 )

      Save money..... no more printing plastic cards. I imagine for version 2.0... no more visits to the DMV office -- possibly 80% of DMV employees no longer needed: Just take an interactive vision test on your phone, type in a credit card number to send the $25 plus $3 convenience fee, and your license is renewed for 4 more years.

      I'm sure the 3rd party company providing the app gets all kinds of data collection and advertising opportunities by having their app on customers' phones. I wonder if the st

    • How is this better than a physical document? This looks more like an attempt at showing off how cutting edge they are.

      Our K-12 schools are shite but we issue digital driver's license.

      Should be good when someone is killed in a car accident and the need to identify the driver. Another excuse to make it easier for law enforcement to be able to unlock your phone?

    • If this were universally accepted, I would gladly remove one more piece of plastic from my wallet.

  • Digital license, make it your lock screen wallpaper. Police need to see your ID, turn on your phone, and you won't have to unlock it. ;)
    • When I was curious about how to let someone else make a call on my phone without giving them access to my address book, the suggestion I found was that I make a separate user profile for guest use and have a password needed to switch back to my main one. Since multiple user profiles are possible, it wouldn't be that hard to make one called "ID" in addition to the guest one for letting a stranger make a call. Then the account with the ID doesn't share any of my other data, but I don't share my ID info with

  • No Thank You (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward

    Last thing I want is my only form of ID to be in my phone. What happens during a traffic stop usually? Cop takes your licence/id back to their car to write up your ticket and or look for other things like warrants. What are they going to do in this case, take your phone with them. No way I want a cop having unattended access to my phone.

  • And what happens ... (Score:3, Funny)

    by PPH ( 736903 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @09:27PM (#57801562)

    ... if a Louisiana resident happens to get pulled over travelling in some technologically backward state. Like California?

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Agripa ( 139780 )

      ... if a Louisiana resident happens to get pulled over travelling in some technologically backward state. Like California?

      There is no requirement for states to honor drivers licenses from other states so no problem.

  • This is most certainly some sort of satanic cult plan to control the flow of ... most fun things.

  • Stupid complicated (Score:3)

    by DogDude ( 805747 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @09:50PM (#57801636)
    This is really absurdly complicated. This is like a Rube Goldberg version of an ID. Who would waste time with something this stupid? As others have said, this takes a non-problem, and makes a very complicated, expensive, time-consuming problem out of it.

  • A digital driver's license? (Score:3)

    by JustAnotherOldGuy ( 4145623 ) on Thursday December 13, 2018 @10:59PM (#57801822) Journal

    A digital driver's license on your phone? What could possibly go wrong?*

    Thank goodness phones are never hacked, infected, spoofed, or fall prey to malware.

    I predict we'll see another story about this within the next year or two about how some poor schmuck had his 'secure' digital driver's license hacked or deleted or altered or revoked, and got arrested and taken to jail or whatever because of it.

    ----
    * I feel like I'm saying "What could possibly go wrong" a lot these days, but damn if I'm not proved right nearly every time I do.

    • I mean people lose their wallets and purses all the time with their physical license in it. If you actually go and read the website or look at the app in the play store, the app doesnt even load unless you enter your PIN or unlock it via face ID or password. It also has a remote wipe featuer incase your lose your phone. Also most phones have lock screens so this seems pretty secure VS a physical DL.

      • Also most phones have lock screens so this seems pretty secure VS a physical DL.

        Like I said, thank goodness phones are never hacked, infected, spoofed, or fall prey to malware.

  • Not good (Score:4, Insightful)

    by renegade600 ( 204461 ) on Friday December 14, 2018 @05:25AM (#57802522)

    Once you willingly unlock your phone for the officer. he can legally search it if he feels it is necessary. No thank you, I will stick with the card.

  • Hardly anyone is going to want to use a digital license for traffic stops or getting through the airport, but what about all those times you need information from your ID for other purposes? Instead of squinting at tiny numbers and transcribing them to paper, being able to use an app to beam data you specify to people who need it would be a huge improvement. Being able to incorporate all forms of ID, including passports and professional certs, would be better still.

  • Let me know when they've made the app part of the lock screen with a PIN or something so it's protected but I don't need to have unlocked my phone and offered it to someone in order to use it.

    • Your phone already has this feature for any app. On iOS its called Guided Access and on Android its called Screen Pinning.
  • Instead of making it harder to create forgeries, this will reduce the effort required to provide fake IDs for people.

    I am sure they will use the extra time to give back to their communities and spend quality time with their families.

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