Florida to soon launch digital driver's licenses

LAKE MARY, Fla. - The State of Florida hopes to launch its digital driver's licenses next month, an initiative it has been working on for years.

"We expect to implement this technology within a month. We’re close to getting this out to the public within a month," said Terrence Samuel, with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, during a meeting with lawmakers this week.

Tuesday, representatives with the agency gave a presentation before the state senate on how the technology would work.

In the first phase, users will be able to use the app to show proof of ID when pulled over by law enforcement or age verification. 

"And what’s interesting, depending on who’s requesting it, that’s gonna determine how much information they get, so if someone just needs your age verification they don’t need as much as a police officer would need for example," said tech expert Leslie Samuel. 

The state said it’s not simply a picture of your license, instead, Samuel explained to FOX 35 News the key is a QR code exchange with both sides needing to consent.

"And when you scan that, what will happen is it will pull the relevant information, your identification or your driver’s license information, and send it to you and also the person that’s requesting it," he said. 

The state said it is also working with Apple to integrate the feature into the Apple Wallet. 

"There are some partner states that Apple is working with already and now Florida is in talks with Apple in order to make that a reality," said Samuel. 

The state said digital licenses won’t replace physical ones which will still need to be carried when operating a vehicle. 

Click here to learn more about Florida Smart ID.

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