14 n On Premise n September/OctOber 2015 www.tlw.org

Where there is a will there is a way. This is especially the case when it comes to counterfeiting IDs, which is one primary reason the State of Wisconsin is introducing a new driver’s license/

identification card format this fall. The new cards will be the most secure in the United States.“Counterfeiting has been happening with driver’s licenses and IDs for years, and it’s been happening with our current format as well,” says Susan Schilz, Compliance, Audit and Fraud Unit supervisor with the Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

The forthcoming format has numerous security advantages over the current version, which was launched in 2012.

“Advances in technology have enabled Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) to offer a new card for identification that makes it the most secure in North America,” said Ann Perry, director of DMV’s Bureau of Driver Services, in a recent press re-lease. “WisDOT is pleased to work with Wisconsin retailers and law enforcement to introduce these new cards and create tools to help their employees spot fraud.”

INNOVATION IN YOUR WALLETThe new format features an innovative polycarbonate card with a laser-engraved black-and-white photo to curb fraud and identity theft. “Unlike older cards,” says Schilz, “it’ll be impossible to pull

back the laminate and stick a new photo in … I’m sure Tavern League members had seen lots of these. With the current card, we’ve seen counterfeiters apply a wash to the surface of the card and replace information. With the new one, this will be impossi-ble to do, so that’s why we went with these features.”

In addition to the black-and-white laser-engraved photo, the card’s tactile security features make it feel slightly stiffer, and when dropped on a hard surface the sound is distinctively different. Oth-er features like the card’s raised signature, date of birth, expiration date, DL/ID number, and U21 until date (prominently displayed in red ink) can be easily felt and hard to copy.

There is also a clear window in the card with a ghost image of the ID holder’s picture, and UV ink highlights intricate Wisconsin artwork on the front. “The features on the card are very visible to anyone who picks them [the cards] up,” says Schilz. “We wanted to make it easy for retailers to identify a valid ID.”

She also adds that for stakeholders, Tavern League members included,

Security CheckAs The New Wisconsin Driver’s License Format Rolls

Out, Tips for Ensuring All IDs Pass the Test By Amanda Wegner

New technology from companies like Intellicheck mobilisa work with either a mobile device or are integrated into existing point of sales systems to authenticate identification cards and driver’s licenses.

September/OctOber 2015 n On Premise n 15

who may not have a UV light or barcode scanner, “these features make it possible for you to feel and see that an ID is authentic.”

The advanced nature of the card’s elements make it very hard to replicate. “But keep in mind, they’re going to try,” Schilz adds.

To that end, WisDOT has developed a host of materials to help get the word out to the public. In addition, if an individual organiza-tion, such as a county tavern league, would like someone from the department to speak at their meeting, they can contact WisDOT’s Office of Public Affairs.

A MIXTURE OF OLD AND NEWWhile WisDOT is set to begin rolling out the new format between September and November 2015, two other versions of Wiscon-sin’s driver’s license and ID cards are currently in circulation. Some are set to expire in 2020; and those issued between March 2012 and Oct. 2015 are set to expire in 2023.

This means that it will be a long, slow process before all resi-dents move from the old formats to the forthcoming, more secure format. So what is a bar owner to do with multiple formats — some highly secure, some with known security issues — coming through the door?

The answer may be investing in technology to validate those older

IDs. And today, many of those technologies come in the form of ID scanners utilizing handheld and real-time technologies.

ARM YOURSELF WITH NEW TECHNOLOGYOne such technology is AgeID, a product developed by Intelli-check Mobilisa and endorsed by American Beverage Licensees (ABL). Its core technology, IDCheck, pulls data from the ID card to both verify the age information on the ID and check the format of the ID card against its database to ensure validity of the card itself. The company’s database contains data on the ID formats of all 50 states and the Canadian provinces, as well as their legacy formats. This specific technology is currently used at the point of sale in Target stores.

“It’s really very easy to use,” says Dr. Bill Roof, president and chief executive officer, Intellicheck Mobilisa. “First, the system asks if it’s a valid format; if it’s not recognized as a known format, that’s your first clue it’s a fake. If it is a known form, the system extracts the data, runs an age check, and the person serving or at the door, gets an easy-to-understand green bar for OK to serve or red not to serve.

If the ID is a fake, the company enters it into the database to track future uses of the format and provide information to law enforcement and other customers using AgeID.

AgeID is available for both mobile devices, including IOS (Apple brand products) and Android, or can be fixed and integrated with POS systems such as Micros and other vendors. It is available for a monthly subscription fee.

“Our technology is very easy and inexpensive,” says Roof. “It’s something that’s really, really going to help owners so they can curb underage drinking and be in compliance with state regulations.”

Two additional technologies provide age verification as well as business information: SmartID Scanner, by Bar & Club Stats, and PatronScan by Servall Biometrics. Like AgeID, these technologies scan IDs to identify fakes and provide information on whether the person can legally be in your establishment.

HAVE A FAKE ON YOUR HANDS?When in doubt, always ask for additional identification. If the person’s age or ID is in question, do not sell alcohol to the person; you must be absolutely convinced the card is authentic. The law allows you to confiscate the card; call your local law enforcement agency so they can retrieve it or return it to the DOT. “If you confiscate something because you think it’s coun-terfeit, we would love to get them back,” says Schilz. “We would be interested in obtaining those fraudulent IDs to keep tabs on security issues, especially with the most re-cent version.”

Wisconsin’s New Driver’s License Format

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“Just because you have someone at the door looking at IDs doesn’t prove that they’re actually checking them,” says Ben Silbert, president and chief executive officer of Bar & Club Stats. “Our technology gives you greater security and provides a legal record of who enters your establishment.”

Both technologies are networked, offer real-time information, and can provide a ban list to keep troublemakers out. This list can be set to private mode just for the establishment or made public and linked to see if troublesome patrons are moving from a bar down the block to yours. (This function is only possible if both establish-ments are using the same technology).

In addition to checking IDs, these systems provide business intelligence data to help bar owners better run their businesses such as peak entry times, number of new patrons vs. repeat vis-itors, average age, gender distribution and other information. “Our technology allows you to be smarter about how you do business while protecting your business,” says Silbert.

Adds Graham Lancaster, director of sales and marketing for Ser-vall Biometrics, “This is really about joining the 21st century. Being able to collect and use information on who is coming into your establishment can help you be more successful than your competi-tion. You want to be on that side of the equation.”

SmartID Scanner is available for a low monthly subscription on mobile devices, including IOS and Android; PatronScan is avail-able as a kiosk or handheld scanner.

One technology some members may be using, UV lights, will be useful with Wisconsin’s new format. “For Tavern League mem-bers, the UV light, if they have them, will continue to be of val-ue,” says DMV’s Schilz. “At a bar door, when it’s dark and you can’t see everything on the card, a UV light could be helpful to see some of the features of our new format.”

A SMART INVESTMENT TO CONSIDERThere’s this sense, says Lancaster, “that the struggles of the past will always be part of the business. But you don’t have to deal with it.”

While many bar owners are already squeezed for every penny, investing in technology to protect your business against fraud and underage drinking might be a worthwhile expense, especially as counterfeiters get savvier in their trade.

“There has been some resistance to adopting technology for this problem, but as IDs get more high-tech, the methods to manip-ulate them do as well,” says Intellicheck Mobilisa’s Roof. “With that, we’re going to need a high-tech piece of equipment to deter-mine if an ID is real.”

And with today’s proliferation of available technologies, the solu-tions are becoming more competitive, both in cost and ease of use. “Owners are used to paying thousands for ID scanning tech-nology, but that’s not the case anymore,” says Silbert. “It is hard to change people’s habits, they’ve been doing it the old school way for years, but there are plenty of alternatives. Let technology do the hard work for you and be your due diligence to protect your patrons and your business.” TLW

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