@Sean O’Dhubhghaill: No, no it does not.

The feckin’ Guards are bad enough as it is without giving them Gestapo-like ideas.

“Papers please”

@Jason Memail: Well, you could always take a photo of same for reference.

@Jason Memail: i agree. It doesnt make people better drivers because accidents happen but it covers you if someone is injured or there is damage done to a car you have a loan on.

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: everyone will eventually have a barcode tattoo

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: It doesn’t say it’s replacing physical documents, it’s just another tool for convenience. It’s a pain in the Swiss losing physical documents too, I can only speak for myself but I’m more likely to lose something physical than my phone (including bank cards). It’s one reason I like the passport card, easier to keep close to me at all times than the book.

@Megan Ward: Stolen phones?

And could the thief use that phone to impersonate you?

I’d imagine phones are targets for theft more than any other item even today.
With all that extra valuable information on them…

And how would you be able to go online to retrieve that information, when it is – presumably – stored on a government database to which you will probably also have lost account access.
Unless you are able to remember the gazillion extra user names and passwords that would be added to all those we have to try to keep control of already.

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: If my phone is stolen and the thief threatens me to such a violent and scary extent that I tell them my passcode, or knocks me out so that they can pull my eyelids open and use my Face ID, I’ve got bigger problems than worrying what they’ll get into on my phone. If this did happen and they were able to get into my phone, I’d be using iCloud to remotely erase the phone. Phones can be stolen with or without these ‘digital wallets’, this isn’t a new potential issue.

I’d be screwed if I was abroad and someone stole a bag that contained my cash and passport if I only used cash, is that a reason for no one to ever carry cash? No, you use what you prefer and the more backup methods you have, the better.

I don’t know about you but I prioritise learning more important passwords off by heart. More concerned about making sure I remember my Gmail password or Apple ID than my Facebook or ASOS password, for example.

Let’s save the fretting until this is mandatory, maybe? If you don’t want to use it, don’t. If they announce that they’re slashing physical ID documents then we can start panicking. There are lots of features people use that others freak out at the idea of, like Apple Pay and Google Pay.

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: Oh, because you’ll come back with ‘and how will you log into iCloud when your phone is gone???’ I would use the phone of a friend, my boyfriend or family. Or find an internet café. Or use my iPad if I’ve brought that and left it in the hotel safe. If I’m doing a solo trip, I need to be extra careful about absolutely anything. Wouldn’t go on many holidays if we assumed the worst will happen every time, though.

@Megan Ward: It’s not about assuming the worst will happen.

But it will happen to some.

And it’s not about someone torturing you to gain account information.
We thought our bank cards were secure. Until several ways of hacking these were created.
We thought our bank accounts were safe, until scammers found ways.
There are many spywares and the like that may already be on your phone.

With new ones coming down the line all the time.

I’ve yet to meet many who don’t let their device handle their account information, and who would have any clue what their account names and passwords are.
When they get a new device they have no clue how to get onto their accounts anymore.

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: You’re right, there could be spyware on our phones and computers stealing our data, getting into all of the websites we use and taking important personal data. What’s the solution, go off the grid and use nothing? Never use things like Revenue Online Service (that contains very important information) in case it’s hacked? That’s not a practical solution for most, all we can do is practice good internet security techniques, use 2 Factor Authentication where possible and the like.

With all due respect to them, those people are very careless. You’re right in that there are so many websites now it’s hard to remember passwords to all, but it’s not a big ask to remember your Google password, Apple/Android details, basically anything you’ll need to get into things again. In almost 20 years of using the internet I’ve been completely locked out of something once, because it was linked to an old email service that’s now defunct. I don’t understand these people who seemingly don’t even know their email password and keep setting up new accounts for everything every time they get a new device.

@Megan Ward: Nope!

Just don’t make ourselves unnecessarily reliant on one single point of failure.
(Although physically we have single points of failure in our brains and our hearts.)

Always have a paper copy of your birth cert somewhere.
A physical passport.
And so on.

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: I think everyone can agree on that. I first got the passport card when I was visiting the US for the first time, knew I’d need ID everywhere but they don’t accept age cards and I didn’t fancy the idea of having my passport book out everywhere especially if drinking, so kept that in the safe. Handy to have the card anyway.

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: Nobody is suggesting that digital versions of birth certs or drivers licenses will replace physical versions. This is a great initiative, despite what the doomsayers and pearl clutchers say

@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: and if you’re abroad and lose your wallet now?