As Iowa goes digital with driver's licenses, Utah weighs pros and cons

(Iowa Department of Transportation/screen shot)


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SALT LAKE CITY — What if you could store your driver's license on your smartphone instead of inside your wallet?

Iowa recently launched testing of a digital driver's license — one that looks just like a normal license with a photo, expiration date and birth date, but it can be pulled up on the screen of a phone, according to Mashable. Officials with the license division in Utah are "very interested" in a similar system, but say it could be a long time before drivers in the Beehive State pull out their phones in place of a plastic ID.

Iowa's Mobile Driver License, or mDL, is limited for now to about 100 Department of Transportation employees while in its testing stage. Along with the driver's info, a quick swipe of the screen brings up a barcode, Mashable reports.

Aside from the obvious convenience factor, the mDL allows the Iowa DMV to make changes to a person's license electronically when necessary, such as an address change, any restrictions or an age change when a driver turns 21.

"Everyone has smartphones and everything is going electronic," said MikeAnn Hurst with the Utah Driver's License Division. "We are very interested in digital licenses, and we have been looking into it."

But along with the perks of a smartphone license come a slew of potential hiccups.


Are the benefits going to outweigh the negatives if we put all your information digital?

–MikeAnn Hurst, Utah Driver's License Div.


"There are a lot of security issues to consider," Hurst said. "Are the benefits going to outweigh the negatives if we put all your information digital?"

Some of those negatives include the potential for identity theft, security and privacy issues and lost phones. Hurst also pointed out that currently TSA agents at the Salt Lake International Airport won't recognize temporary licenses as a valid form of identification for air travelers. There would likely be issues if Utah tried to switch to digital licenses.

Additionally, when a driver gets pulled over for a DUI, officers confiscate the physical license. That process would need to change as well.

"When you really start looking into it, it opens up a lot of questions," Hurst said. "We're not opposed, we're just cautious because we want to make sure we do the right thing."

#poll

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Jessica Ivins

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