Digital IDs are a growing trend due to their convenience. Why carry a physical wallet when you can store your credit cards and IDs in a digital wallet on your Android phone? Many states allow digital driver’s licenses or IDs in Google Wallet, and Google recently added the ability to store a US passport through a so-called ID pass. This additional functionality is convenient, but is it safe to use? This article investigates how safe it is to store your passport information in Google Wallet.
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Google Wallet encryption
One main way to protect data on your phone is to encrypt it so that it’s difficult for anyone other than the user to access. However, not all data is encrypted on your Android phone. While most data on modern versions of Android is encrypted, some system metadata may not be fully encrypted. To further protect the encryption on your phone, many manufacturers have additional encryption safeguards, such as Google’s Titan chip and Samsung Knox.
Source: Samsung
While Android’s security matters, Google Wallet has additional safeguards on top of Android’s safeguards. Google Wallet encrypts payment and ID information, while it’s stored on your device, and while it’s being used. This encryption meets current industry standards, so you can be sure it’s safe. Your passport information is encrypted, as it’s stored and as it’s transferred.
Passport information verification
Another important way to protect your passport information is to verify it before adding it to a device. Verification is a layer of protection to make sure bad actors can’t add the information to their devices. Google Wallet does this in three ways when adding your passport: scanning your passport chip, using facial recognition, and through government agency verification.
Source: Google
US passports have a security chip embedded in them. This chip contains a digital signature that is unique to your passport and is hard to replicate or forge. This means it has a high level of security that is nearly impossible for bad actors to spoof. Part of the process of adding your passport to Google Wallet is to scan the security chip in your passport. This piece of verification makes the process more secure.
Another part of adding your passport to Google Wallet is to take a short video of your face. The use of this video is twofold. The first is to make sure you’re a real person and not a false submission from a bad actor. Another is to compare the video to your passport photo for facial features to make sure the person submitting the request is the same as the one in the photo.
Governmental verification is the final layer of security. With the user’s consent, the information entered is sent to the US Department of State, which issues passports. They verify that the information entered was legitimate and adds a governmental layer of security to the process. These three steps ensure that the owner of the passport is the one adding it to Google Wallet.
User controls
There are built-in user controls to make sure data is stored and shared where and when you want. You must initiate and authorize your passport information being shared, and it needs the verification of a biometric data or your screen lock to be shared. This means you don’t need to worry about your information being accidentally shared from your phone.
You can only have one ID pass related to each US passport, so you decide which device has the ID pass and stop others from having it. Additionally, if your device with your ID pass is lost or stolen, you can remotely wipe your information from it. These features make sure that users have control over how their data is shared and where it’s stored.
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Storing your passport in Google Wallet through an ID pass is convenient and easy. It’s also safe due to industry-standard encryption, many layers of verification, and user controls. However, none of this matters if your phone is not secured. Make sure you have a long and secure PIN, password, or pattern to protect your device’s information and supplement the other safeguards. Then, to make your travels smoother, store your hotel room key in Google Wallet and avoid carrying another card while you’re on vacation.