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Driver's Licenses with Digital Watermarks

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the stuck-with-near-beer dept.

ForceQuit writes "MIT Technology Review reports that Minnesota will begin issuing a unique driver's license designed to combat counterfeiting. It includes a reflective image (of a loon) that appears to float above and below the card when the license is tilted. It also includes an invisible, digital watermark capable of carrying security data such as date of birth. The information would be readable only through a computerized scanner, which law enforcement officers could carry."

2 of 373 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Nothing to worry about... by rkhalloran · · Score: 3, Informative

    I know one of the local pubs put in a scanner that supposedly can read all of the various mag-stripe licenses. He said saving the cost/headaches of fines for serving to minors more than covers the cost (approx US$2K).

    Don't know how many of the forgers hack up the mag-stripe data as well, but it's probably not a lot.

  2. Re:Nothing to worry about... by mrgreen4242 · · Score: 4, Informative
    In Michigan anyway, and I am assuming most states, the mag stripe contains a very limited amount of info. There's your DL number, your DOB, and a couple of SMALL numeric codes that, from what I can tell, correlate to the office where your ID was proccessed at, and the type of license/endorsements you have (regular driver, CDL, School Bus, HazMat, motorcycle, etc).

    I am involved in a project to install new ID systems in the Sec. of State offices here, and I have personally scanned my licence into a text editor and looked at the information on there. It's something like 45 characters or so.

    If you are worried about someone getting all that iformation, it would be much more effective and much easier to have a cheap camera installed at teh point of sale (cashier register, self checkout lane, in the black light of the door bouncer types of bars) and grab medium resolution 5 fps video of everything that goes by. All that info that you are paranoid about giving up through an electronic reader is actually on the front of your license.