By Greg Wright
MBA, CFE, CFP®, CLU, ChFC
Certified Fraud Examiner & National Speaker
Recently, I visited a dentist recommended by a
friend. After filling out the standard
paperwork, the receptionist asked to see my driver’s license. She was getting ready to scan it into the
office system when I told her that I did not want her to copy it. She said that it was their policy. I said that she could look at it to verify my
identity, but she was not to copy it because it could lead to identity theft. Further, since I was a cash-paying customer,
and dental insurance was not involved, the dental practice had no obligation to
copy it. She called the practice manager
into the conversation. I refused to
budge, and the dentist refused to budge.
I left and went back to my old dentist.
In my opinion, you should not allow (never
allow) your driver’s license to be copied or the DL number to be recorded by
anyone other than law enforcement or events surrounding a traffic accident. You
might be required to prove your identity, and that is okay to show it to
appropriate individuals.
The really important information on your driver’s
license is the ID number itself. With that number, someone could write a check using
a facsimile of your check, or (seriously) give that number to law enforcement
at the time of their traffic incident while claiming that they don’t have the
physical card with them.
Criminal identity theft might occur when a
fraudster has an incident with law enforcement - may be a traffic violation or a
DUI felony - and someone claims to be you. They might leave you with unpaid
parking tickets, a court date that you know nothing about, or an outstanding warrant
for your arrest. Once “you” fail to pay the ticket or fail to appear in court,
your real problems begin. You could find
yourself in county lockup making new friends.
If you file your taxes electronically, you
might be asked for your driver’s license number so the IRS can verify that you
are actually you. Someone using your
driver’s license number could spend your tax refund. Try getting that corrected.
Protect your driver’s license. In some ways, it is more important than your
Social Security number.
Note: the driver's license shown above is a sample furnished by the BMV.