NJ unveils new digital driver license

Continuing the Christie Administration’s efforts to boost security and safety, New Jersey’s next generation of personal identification — the new Enhanced Digital Driver License was unveiled last week. The new license, while similar in appearance to the old license, features more than 25 covert and overt features designed to reduce fraud and abuse through updated technology and enhanced security features that are known only to the Motor Vehicle Commission and its law enforcement partners. The new license is also considered to be materially-compliant under REAL ID standards. The REAL ID Act of 2005 is a federal law that imposes certain security, authentication and issuance procedures for state driver licenses and state ID cards in order for them to be accepted for official purposes as defined by the US Secretary of Homeland Security. In late 2012, the Motor Vehicle Commission will begin to implement a new, secure central issuance process for all driver license renewals that should eliminate over 1 million visits to its agencies per year. The task of central issuance will be aided by state-of-the-art facial recognition technology because it will give the Motor Vehicle Commission the flexibility it needs to investigate possible fraud before a final license is mailed to its recipient. In the last decade, the Motor Vehicle Commission has implemented numerous security and fraud prevention measures to complement its digital license, including 6-point ID Verification, security enhanced license plates and temporary registration tags and a comprehensive document fraud training program which even outside partners have taken advantage of over the years. In 2010, the Motor Vehicle Commission conducted 340 criminal investigations that led to 278 arrests resulting in either completed or still-pending criminal prosecutions triggered by fraudulent documents and various fraud-related offenses and another 66 related to other offenses. And just last month, the Office of the Attorney General and the NJ State Police announced the culmination of two large-scale investigations that were the direct result of state agencies leveraging each other’s assets. The cooperative investigations - dubbed Operation Southern Drawn and Operation White Cloud, showed the direct relationship between the sale of fraudulent identification document, the sale of stolen cars, car jackings and the illegal sale of guns and drugs.