Critics of a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) proposal to waive certain federal law requirements for digital driver’s licenses say the TSA’s plan would rapidly expand the use of digital licenses in the U.S. before appropriate privacy safeguards are in place.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and three other leading civil rights and privacy organizations recently filed legal comments objecting to the proposal. Summarizing the groups’ concerns, Jay Stanley — an ACLU senior policy analyst — said:
“The TSA is threatening to prematurely lock in a harmful digital identity system that allows ID card issuers to track where people show their ID, fails to include a number of important privacy protections, and fails to ensure that the system is free from the control of particular private corporations.”
The proposed digital driver’s licenses, commonly called “mobile driver’s licenses” or “mDLs,” would be accepted by federal agencies for official purposes.
