{"id":226580,"date":"2026-01-08T04:03:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T04:03:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/226580\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T04:03:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T04:03:09","slug":"heres-what-to-know-about-kentuckys-new-state-mobile-id-app","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/226580\/","title":{"rendered":"Here&#8217;s what to know about Kentucky&#8217;s new state mobile ID app"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>FRANKFORT, Ky. \u2014 Adding credit cards to your phone is nothing new. But now, in some states, you can also have a digital form of identification. <\/p>\n<p>Ohio released its digital identification program through Apple&#8217;s iPhone wallet <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wcpo.com\/news\/state\/state-ohio\/ohio-residents-can-now-add-their-drivers-licenses-state-ids-to-apple-wallet\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">about a year ago<\/a>. On Tuesday, Kentucky released its own mobile ID app, called Kentucky Mobile ID. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt just allows you to verify your identification using your smartphone,\u201d said Naitore Djigbenou, director for the Office of Public Affairs with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC).<\/p>\n<p>WATCH: We show you how the new mobile ID works and where you can use it<\/p>\n<p>Kentucky rolls out new mobile ID option for residents<\/p>\n<p>Djigbenou said the app uses information on file in the state&#8217;s driver\u2019s license system to confirm that you are who you are. <\/p>\n<p>The mobile ID is completely <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wcpo.com\/news\/northern-kentucky\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">optional <\/a>for residents. If you do wish to sign up for a digital ID, you can download the app, enter your phone number, insert photos of the front and back of your ID and take a picture of yourself to verify your identity. <\/p>\n<p>We wanted to test out where you can use the new form of ID. <\/p>\n<p>First, we tried to buy alcohol at Kroger and Target <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wcpo.com\/news\/local-news\/hamilton-county\/green-township\/were-scared-were-hurt-how-a-cincinnati-woman-found-out-she-had-a-stolen-license-plate-on-her-car\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">using <\/a>the digital ID. Both stores told us that a physical ID and barcode were needed to scan.<\/p>\n<p>We also tried some local bars, but were turned down. <\/p>\n<p>You also cannot use your digital ID in Kentucky or Ohio during a traffic stop. Sgt. Tyler Ross with the Strategic Communications Unit of the Ohio State Highway Patrol told us a digital ID would not help officers during traffic stops. <\/p>\n<p>Have you tried to use the Kentucky Mobile ID app? Marlena wants to hear from you. You can contact her here:<\/p>\n<p>    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wcpo.com\/news\/state\/state-kentucky\/mailto:marlena.lang@wcpo.com?subject=News%20Tip\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/contact-marlena.png\" alt=\"contact marlena\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re still gonna have to look you up, and look up that information, that\u2019s why that physical ID is required,&#8221; Ross said. <\/p>\n<p>One place your digital ID can be used, though, is the airport.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour real ID would be on your phone, so you could easily use that to pass through security checkpoints without having to dig through your bag,\u201d Djigbenou said. <\/p>\n<p>Kentucky officials said that as the digital ID becomes more common, residents will be able to use it at bars and other businesses, if the business chooses to accept it. <\/p>\n<p>However, Djigbenou said she still recommends bringing a physical ID just as you bring credit or debit cards, even if you have Apple Pay.<\/p>\n<p>Businesses can download the Mobile ID Verify app to easily check mobile IDs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"FRANKFORT, Ky. \u2014 Adding credit cards to your phone is nothing new. But now, in some states, you&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":226581,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[101377,85,46,99418,123964,321,123965,123966,27035,125,91959],"class_list":{"0":"post-226580","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mobile","8":"tag-9-on-your-side","9":"tag-il","10":"tag-israel","11":"tag-kentucky-news","12":"tag-ky-post","13":"tag-mobile","14":"tag-nky","15":"tag-nky-news","16":"tag-northern-kentucky","17":"tag-technology","18":"tag-wcpo"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/226580","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=226580"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/226580\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/226581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=226580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=226580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=226580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}