DMV

A U.S. government plan to use long-range RFID technology as part of a border-crossing security initiative is coming under intensified fire by an industry group.

With Real ID Act regulations lurking somewhere around the corner, secure ID management provider, Digimarc, is well-positioned to help states comply with the new requirements. The fact that the Oregon-based company is already in more than two-thirds of U.S. state driver license offices certainly gives it a leg up as well.

"We're in 32 U.S. driver license programs, five Canadian provinces and Mexico with its voter ID project," said Scott Carr, Digimarc's executive vice president.

How do you feel about the prospect of having to painstakingly document who you are next time you get a driver's license, and then do the same thing five years later when you have to renew? That's the burden that would be placed on Americans under the federal Real ID law passed in 2005 and scheduled to go into effect in 2008. The act requires - among many other things - that motor vehicle departments verify, copy and store both in paper and electronic form all the foundation documents such as the birth certificate and Social Security card required to prove your identity, and to keep those records for up to 10 years.