LTO to roll out digital version of driver’s license

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) plans to launch a digital, or electronic version of the driver's license it issues.  

The LTO will introduce digital driver's licenses soon

This initiative is in line with the digitalization efforts which was directed by President Ferdinand Marcos on the LTO. Furthermore, LTO Chief Jay Art Tugade said that this might be able to function as an alternative to physical licenses considering that the agency currently has a low supply of plastic driver’s license cards.  

According to the LTO, there are certain advantages to using a digital driver’s license. For one thing, its functions are equivalent to that of a real, physical license. The digital license will also be accepted as a valid ID for registration renewals and other online transactions. Law enforcement officers will consider it valid, all the while, Tugade says it might “aid the agency in eradicating corruption.”  

Not more details were talked about regarding that latter part, but we can imagine that a digital license is much less vulnerable to damage, being lost, being stolen, etc.  

Currently, no timeline has been set regarding the rollout of the digital driver’s license. The LTO did say though, that the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is developing a “super app” that will function as a sort of storage program for the LTO digital driver’s license as well as other government identification cards. It’s a digital wallet if you will.  

Is a digital driver's license a good idea? Can the LTO and the DICT ensure that it is secure?

Tugade also assures that the upcoming digital driver’s license will be secure. It will come with the existing security features of a physical driver’s license, and the upcoming super app the DICT is making will also have its own set of security measures.  

Once the digital driver’s license is rolled out, Tugade said it will supersede the official receipt (OR) as a temporary form of the LTO-issued driver’s license.  

Are you looking forward to using a digital version of the LTO driver’s license? Or do you still prefer the good old plastic card? 

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