Code discovered in the latest iOS 15 beta shows that Apple is working on a security system for its upcoming digital ID card feature that relies on images of a user's face for identity verification.
Apple will expand the utility of its Wallet app in iOS 15 with support for government-issued IDs, allowing users to carry digital versions of IDs like a driver's license on their iPhone. Note: The feature will initially only be available in the US. According to the code, users who want to add an ID to Wallet will be guided through an onboarding process that includes taking pictures of their face to verify their identity, that reported 9to5Mac. The procedure is similar to setting up Face ID, with an animation prompting the user to turn their head and perform other movements while the front-facing camera captures a picture of the face, according to the report.
iOS 15: Driver's license and co. in the Wallet app
Unlike Face ID, which captures multiple angles of a user's face, ID card verification asks users to look to the side, close their eyes, raise their eyebrows, open their mouth and smile, the report said. How the system matches the captured images with the digital card data is unknown, although iOS 15 code suggests that Wallet performs the verification phase using on-device processing.
Facial recognition appears to play a role in the technology. This security measure should alleviate some concerns about identity theft. Apple announced support for ID cards at WWDC 2021 in June. It remains to be seen when the whole thing will be introduced here. (Image: Apple)
