South Korea: Telecom Giants Launch Blockchain-Based Driving License Authentication Service

According to a report by Business Korea published on June 24, 2020, major South Korean telecom giants – SK Telecom, KT, and LG Uplus – launched a blockchain-enabled identity app dubbed ‘PASS’ that enables Koreans to store and authenticate their driving licenses on their smartphones.

Authenticate Driving License via Blockchain

Doing justice to its tag of being one of the top technologically-advanced countries in the world, South Korea has now unveiled a service that allows users to authenticate their driving licenses through a digital identity app.

For the uninitiated, the blockchain-powered app, called PASS, was launched in July 2018 and currently boasts of more than 30 million users across the country. The app is primarily used for authentication in mobile financial transactions and will now enable users to verify their driving licenses.

Per sources close to the matter, the new driving license authentication service launched on PASS is linked to the verification system of the National Police Agency and the Korea Highway Traffic Authority. The interconnectedness of the app with various data repositories enables real-time verification of a user’s identity. The app also prevents fraudulent use as it links to the device identity on which it is installed.

For identity purposes, PASS will display the user’s photo on their driver’s license along with a QR code and barcode. Notably, the codes are automatically refreshed and come with a floating animation layer so as to prevent theft or illicit use of personal information.

Beyond Identity Verification

Further, the digital driver’s license service is applied to all stores of convenient store chains CU and GS25. This enables app users to verify their age for the purchase of age-specific goods such as alcohol and cigarettes as they’ll be able to present their driving license on the go.

Commenting on the development, Oh Se-hyeon, Vice President and Head of Blockchain/authentication Office, SK Telecom, said:

“We are delighted to launch the digital driver’s license service, which will provide users with greater security and convenience.”

Adding:

“Going forward, we will work closely with diverse institutions and enterprises to promote its use in non-face-to-face services, which have surged since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The development is a reminder of South Korea’s leading role in the adoption of distributed ledger technology (DLT) across a wide array of industries and ecosystems.

Earlier this year, BTCManager reported that top-ranking South Korean university – Postech – had tapped ICONLOOP’s BROOF platform to issue blockchain-based graduate diplomas.