Apple Toying With The Idea Of Using iPhones For Identification

Our smartphones are highly personal devices and in some instances, they can already be used for personal identification, such as storing driver’s licenses. However it seems that Apple is taking things one step further and suggesting that perhaps our iPhones could even be used as passports.

This is according to a recently discovered patent in which with the use of a secure storage using using RFID, the iPhone has the potential to be used as a passport. The patent also mentions how there is a growing use of e-Passports, which are passports that come with a chip embedded in them that contain information about the person, such as name, date of birth, country of origin, and so on, meaning that what Apple is suggesting isn’t exactly new, just maybe in a new form factor.

It is an interesting idea where we are able to store all our information within a single device, although one has to wonder about the security issues surrounding it. With our smartphones being susceptible to hacks, malware, getting stolen, losing it, and etc., does it really make sense for it to be used for something as sensitive as a passport?

That being said, this is only an idea that Apple has had and with patents, there’s no telling if Apple plans on making it a reality.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Apple, Cellphones
Tags: iPhone, Patent, Privacy