Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey, has issued a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook requesting that the app "Drivers License" be removed from the App Store. The Senator is convinced the iPhone application "poses a threat to public safety and national security."
"I write to express my concern with "License" by DriversEd.com, an application available for download in Apple's App Store which can be used to create counterfeit identity documents. I believe this application poses a threat to public safety and national security, and I request that you remove it from the App Store immediately." wrote Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr.
"While DriversEd.com markets the app as a fun game, it can also be used in a way that allows criminals to create a new identity, steal someone else's identity, or permit underage youth to purchase alcohol or tobacco illegally." asserted Casey in his letter.
The free app allows users to create fake driver licenses purely for the purposes of laugh out loud entertainment. Simply dial up the art for your home state, add a photo and then fill in your personal info. You can quickly save your phony license to your iPhone's photo gallery or share it on Facebook.
Developer's of the app, DriversEd.com, are using the app which launched in 2009 as a way to promote their popular online driver's education website. The site has been offering online driver-training courses since 1997 and was written up in several major publications like Forbes and Entrepreneur.
"This app is completely free for your entertainment! To get a REAL license check out DriversEd.com!" the app's creators wrote.
Although the company's App Store page includes a disclaimer that state identification cards and driver's licenses shown on their application are fictitious, the results produced look incredibly authentic except for the DriversEd.com logo included on the image when users punch up a license. But that logo can be easily removed with minor photo re-touching. Our own Tim Cook California driver license took a matter of minutes to produce.
Is the Pennsylvania Senator justified in his concerns, or just being paranoid? We'll all find out soon enough if Tim Cook decides to pull the free app from the App Store. Thanks to the national security concerns of Senator Casey, I'm certain he will. So snag it now before it's a goner.
[via The Consumerist]
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