UK to introduce digital driving licences

UK to introduce digital driving licences
Not a valid attachment ID.
Digital driving licences are to be introduced in the UK as the government  seeks to use technology to  "transform public  services".
They will be  accessible on a new government smartphone app and  can be accepted as a form of  identification when buying alcohol,  voting or boarding domestic  flights.
Physical licences will still be issued, but ministers believe the voluntary digital option will  "take government into the  2020s", according to  the Times.
A government  spokesman told BBC News:  "This government is committed to using technology to make  people's lives easier and transform public  services.
"Technology now  allows digital  IDs to be more secure than physical  IDs, but we  are clear that they will not be  mandatory."
Virtual licences  can be used  in supermarkets, the Times  reported, allowing customers to verify their age without waiting for a member of  staff. The new digital  permits will be introduced later this year, the newspaper  writes.
One potential feature could allow users to hide their address in certain situations, such as in bars or  shops.
According to government data, there were more than 50 million  holders of a full or provisional driving licence in the UK in  2023.
The digital  permits have been launched as part of a  "portfolio" in a new government app called  Gov.uk.
The wallet  would be secured in a similar way to many banking  apps and would only allow the  rightful owner of a licence to access  it. It will use features found  in many smartphones, such as biometrics and  multi-factor authentication,  such as security  codes.
The government is considering integrating other services into the app, such as  paying taxes and  claiming social security benefits.
Other forms of identification, such as  social security numbers,  may be  added, but it is  unlikely that physical identification will be  completely replaced.
The new technology  does not appear to  go far enough to become a  full-scale digital ID  card, as Sir Tony Blair and Lord William  Hague have previously called for.
At the time, the head of privacy group Big Brother Watch said  that such a move  "would be one of the biggest  attacks on privacy ever seen in the  UK." In 2016, the  head of the UK's Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) said  that digital  licenses are being  developed.
Virtual licenses are already in use in Australia, Denmark, Iceland and Norway, as well as  in some  states in the United States.
In the European Union, every member state is required to introduce at least one form of digital  identification by 2026.

[attachment deleted by admin]