Community | January 23, 2010 | 14 comments

Why You Won't Smile For Your Future Driver's License

source: http://autos.aol.com/article/no-smile-license

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WeAreChangeKy
It seems that it won't be long before you'll find facial recognition technology when you apply for a driver's license. And as a result, you better wipe that smile off your face.

In fact, the technology is already in place in Australia. When Aussie drivers apply for licenses they'll have their pictures taken, and the new software will then measure three distances: the spaces between the eyes, nose, and mouth.

License applicants won't notice a drastic difference in the process, but they'll notice they are asked not to smile while the photo is being taken. The machines require a "neutral expression" in order to pick up the correct measurements. According to creators of the facial recognition software, two photos of the same person can be mismatched if there is a strong expression in one versus the other.

Why all the fancy technology? Australia is using the calculations in comparison to the Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) database, and if it appears that an applicant is trying to get a license under a different name the system will flag the authorities.

Although it's stated that the "system is designed to prevent people who have had their license taken away from applying for a second one," stopping "license cheats" is only the skin-deep argument.

The deeper issue is identity theft. According to David Borger, the state of New South Wales' assistant transport minister, "Identity fraud costs Australia more than $3.5 billion a year." That's about a third of a percent of the nation's entire gross domestic product, almost as much as New South Wales spends on its entire road system in a year.

If it sounds like things are getting all Minority Report in the land Down Under, well, that's nothing compared to what could potentially happen in the U.S.

In fact, four states already implement the "no smiling" rule, including Arkansas, Indiana, Nevada and Virginia. Over 30 in the U.S. have a digital photography capture for their identification cards.

Between the security measures states are adding, the trials of Enhanced Driver's Licenses (EDLs), the federal government's Real ID program, and corporations actively planning for higher security, a mere RFID chip is going to look like the 19th century when you could just write an "X" to sign your name.

And unsurprisingly, a number of people aren't exactly happy about it.
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14 comments // Why You Won't Smile For Your Future Driver's License

  • Progresshiv
    • 0
      Progresshiv  

    • I still think would be easier to ban credit cards and checking accounts and instead require every adult to carry $1500 cash at all times and pack a loaded .45 caliber revolver. No automatic weapons, just single shot cannons. Things would sort themselves out within a few months.

    • 2 years ago
  • nursediesel
  • artemis6
    • 0
      artemis6  

    • Hate to break it to ya , this technology is easy to steal . Saw it demonstrated nearly two years ago . It will be easier for anyone who walks near your chip , to get the info they need . The old ways are safer .

    • 2 years ago
  • ryan8566
  • bigred5
  • divotdawg
    • 0
      divotdawg  

    • Big Brother...he's watching us again. Good grief. This is just a wee bit ridiculous in my eyes. I'm sure the U.S. will jump on that bandwagon pretty soon. The more control they have, the better as far as they're concerned. I thought it was just a unique problem to the U.S. but I see it's really not. I'm really not surprised by anything I read anymore.

    • 2 years ago
  • MotherForTruth
  • jubal
  • treewolf39
  • Progresshiv
  • nursediesel
  • jubal
    • 0
      jubal  

    • I think a lot of people are going to start developing facial tics, twitching and involuntary movements in reaction to this.

    • 2 years ago
  • Varex_Sythe
    • 0
      Varex_Sythe  

    • I'm actually for this. Helps prevent identity theft, helps keep bad drivers off the road. Hell the only problem I see people potentially complaining about is that it might be a better way for the government to keep track of you, but that's getting more than a little paranoid. Besides, nowhere in the constitution does it say that people have the right to drive or have a drivers license. Though this could also be implemented on regular ID's.

      Hopefully there would be some added bonuses though. I could see this kind of technology and/or organizing crossing over with things like the TSA. Wouldn't it be nice if the TSA no longer depended on a list of names that applies to even children who haven't done anything, and instead could mark people on the flight watch list and do facial recognition to identify those people?

    • 2 years ago
  • keithponder
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