Licenses, Scanners Could Be Used to Track Drinking Habits

The rising practice of scanning electronic drivers' licenses at bars and restaurants could be used to track drinking and dining habits,
Technology writer Jem Matzen began looking more closely at the practice of license scanning following an incident at a Houstons restaurant where his license was scanned by a waitress without his permission. "It's one thing when a government representative scans your driver's license; it's another thing entirely when a restaurant does it, and records your personal information in the process," he wrote.

Officials at the company which owns Houstons told Matzen that the license was scanned for his own protection -- to detect false IDs -- but also said that scanning also protects the restaurant by preventing service to underage drinkers.

Upon a second visit to the restaurant, Matzen refused to allow a waitress to walk away with his driver's license and scan it; as a result, he was refused service.

Security expert Brian Scheier said that there is not much risk of identity theft from scanning drivers' licenses. But, he said, "Would you like a list of every bar you've visited to be posted on the Internet?," continuing, "Let's say I had a bar -- I could offer a drink special for 10 percent off if you agree to let me sell your drinking data to Bacardi. There's nothing wrong with that because as the bar owner, I'd be telling you about it upfront and you'd have to agree to it. But to do this without notifying people, by collecting data through age verification, is kind of sleazy."

Schneier also said that "the record of your drinking habits could be used in court as evidence -- for instance, in a divorce case if your wife accuses you of being an alcoholic."

Jay Stanley, public-education director of the American Civil Liberties Union's technology and liberty program, called license scanning "a violation of privacy and civil liberties. "It is a violation of the principle that personal information collected for one purpose should not be used for other purposes without an individual's affirmative, fully informed permission," he said. "The fact that you provide information to prove you are complying with drinking-age laws should not require you to give up other personal information about yourself, and to be tracked."