For over two years, Apple offered an app in its App Store that allowed users to find templates for driver’s licenses for all 50 states. Users then had the ability to upload photos to a chosen template. While the manufacturer of the driver’s license app said the app was not designed to promote fake IDs, Apple succumbed to political pressure and removed the app from the App Store on December 12, 2011.
Apple typically makes developers go through a time-consuming screening process before it will offer an app in the App Store. Because Apple does not use open-source technology like Google, it has the final say over what it offers. In the case of the license app, I wonder how the app has flown under the radar until now.
Why Now?
What made Apple remove the app? Sen. Bob Casey (D, PA), wrote a letter to Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, asking him to remove this app from the App Store. Casey noted concerns regarding the ability to make fake IDs and possible risks such as identity theft. Some people have said Casey took this action because he faces re-election.
Concluding Thoughts
I wonder why Apple even offered this in the first place. Apple would have known it would succumb to pressure. It is possible that the company believed the manufacturer’s rationale that the resolution of the photos had poor quality. Therefore, no one would have the ability to present them as fake IDs. It is also possible that Apple pushed the limits to see what type of limits actually apply to the company.
Whatever the reason, I agree with Apple’s decision. Whether anyone had the ability to pass this off as an ID becomes irrelevant to a point. It comes down to social responsibility and common sense.
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