Creating an Efficient, Fully Encrypted Electronic Verification
A retail outlet or other relying party would then use a reader to authenticate the mDL via a cryptographic public-private key system, confirming a legitimate authority issued the identifying information specifically to that device.
Using the ISO/IEC 18013–5 international standard — secure, interoperable interface specifications established by STA, AAMVA and other organizations, published in fall 2021 — states can design custom software to read and verify mDL data that, because of its uniformity, should make mDLs usable across states.
Per the ISO standards, wireless protocols such as near-field communication or Bluetooth allow data transmissions to occur offline.
“There is a certain misconception that you’re essentially just taking a picture of your physical card and then sticking it on your phone. That’s not what this is,” Bohrer says. “This is a fully encrypted, digital credential that is validated through NFC.”
CHECK OUT: How some states are using a single digital identity for accessing state services.
How to Navigate This Hybrid ID Environment
In 2021, Apple announced it was working with several states to enable the iPhone and Apple Watch Wallet to hold mDLs that could be checked at certain Transportation Security Administration airport checkpoints.
Since March, for example, at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, Arizona residents with TSA PreCheck and a state-issued ID in Apple Wallet have been able to tap their device on a TSA credential reader to verify their identity through encrypted, digitally transmitted data.
Physical driver’s licenses aren’t on the verge of extinction, however; for IDs to become fully digital, every driver would need to have a smartphone or other device that can handle mDL data, and each relying agency would also need to be outfitted with appropriate devices and software.
Still, Bohrer foresees an increasingly hybrid ID environment, similar to the current state of digital payments, in which people sometimes make transactions on their phone but also carry a physical payment card.
“Two years ago, there were maybe six states entertaining some type of mobile driver’s license,” Bohrer says. “We’ve reached the tipping point, where over 50 percent are in some way involved with mDLs. States recognize this is more efficient than a physical card as a way to distribute identification moving forward; they want to create convenience for their constituents and also improve the issuing process on their side.”
