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October 23, 2007

Dave Druker
Henry Haupt

Jesse White Unveils New Driver's License and ID Card Featuring State-of-the-Art Security

Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White today unveiled newly designed state drivers' licenses and identification (ID) cards with enhanced security features. The design incorporates multiple layers of security, as well as an inventory control mechanism that ensures Illinois drivers' licenses and ID cards will remain among the most secure in the nation.

"These security features work in tandem to further protect Illinois drivers' licenses and ID cards from fraud and counterfeiting," said Secretary White. "Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America. With these important security enhancements we are taking extra precautions to protect Illinois citizens, as well as to ensure that Illinois drivers' licenses and ID cards are among the most reliable identification documents in the country."

The newly designed drivers' licenses and ID cards are now available at the Secretary of State Melrose Park Driver Licensing facility, which is serving as the pilot site prior to the roll out of the new licenses and ID cards. The equipment to issue the new drivers' licenses and ID cards will be phased in statewide, starting November 6 in southern Illinois and moving north. All Secretary of State driver licensing facilities will be converted to the new technology by the end of January 2008.

Residents with valid drivers' licenses or ID cards do not need to obtain the newly designed cards, as the current design for existing cards remains valid until those cards expire.

The new security features include kinetic movement and color shifting designs, a UV feature, microtext, and a laser feature that cannot be duplicated utilizing standard techniques often used in fraud attempts. Other new features aimed at increasing security include a ghost image of the photo and incorporation of the date of birth in two locations on the cards.

In addition to the security enhancements, a new inventory tracking system has been adopted to monitor and track the material used in card production. If a driver's license or ID card has not been properly issued in a driver's license facility using genuine materials, the card can be readily identified as fraudulent, and it can potentially be traced to the location of materials used to manufacture it.

Improved design features also include new colors across the card tops that indicate card types. The card type color indicators are:

• Red: Driver's License and Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
• Green: Identification Card (ID Card)
• Purple: Temporary Visitor Driver's License (TVDL)

Text included on the card fronts contains the same information, but is presented in a new way that improves readability and ease of use in verification of information.

Card backs for identification cards now include the text "For Identification Purposes Only, Not a License to Drive." The writable surface for organ/tissue donation witness signatures is omitted, as the state's First Person Consent law renders this consent unnecessary.

Additional information on the new drivers' license and ID cards is available at www.cyberdriveillinois.com.