I’m Kayla. I’m the person juggling a backpack, a latte, and a kid’s hoodie at the airport. Paper IDs hate me. So I started using biometric digital ID wherever I could. Face, eyes, finger—the whole thing. I wanted less fuss and more “go.”
You know what? It mostly worked. But it also got weird.
What I Actually Used
- iPhone Face ID (on my iPhone 14) for banking, Apple Pay, and app logins.
- CLEAR Plus at LAX and ATL. It scans my eyes or face to jump the ID check line.
- TSA’s face camera at the podium (CAT-2). My face got matched to my ID. No hand-off.
- Delta facial boarding at the gate in ATL. I looked at the camera and walked on.
- ID.me selfie check for my IRS account. I had to take a live video of my face.
I used all that over a few months—work trips, school runs, and one chaotic game day weekend.
If you’re curious how a state-issued mobile driver’s license feels in day-to-day life, I spent a week with Georgia’s version and wrote about it right here.
The Good Stuff
Speed. Real speed. At LAX, I was late and still made it. CLEAR moved me up fast, and the agent waved me through. I held my coffee the whole time. No wallet dance.
At the gate in ATL, Delta used face match to board. No paper pass. I looked up, ding, done. People behind me whispered, “That’s it?” It felt smooth. Almost too smooth.
Spoiler: Salt Lake City was even more seamless—my Utah test drive is here.
At home, Face ID saved me all day. Pay for groceries. Open my bank app. Sign in to my health portal. It took a second. I didn’t have to type a long password with dry, shaky hands after a run. Small joy, big win.
And when it worked with a mask off and my glasses on? Chef’s kiss.
The Not-So-Fun Parts
Masks and hats tripped it up. Early on, Face ID hated my cloth mask. I had to pull it down, which felt awkward. Big sunglasses can also throw it.
Lighting matters. ID.me asked me to take a selfie video. The first try failed. Harsh kitchen light. I moved near a window and it worked. I learned fast: face forward, steady hand, clean lens.
Tech hiccups happen. One morning at ATL, CLEAR was open but slow. The camera kept asking me to try again. The line grew. A staffer switched the lane, and it finally scanned. I still made my flight, but my heart did laps.
On the flip side, six weeks with Oklahoma’s roll-out had its own drama, which I documented here.
And yes, it feels odd. Having a camera study your face at the gate? You get used to it. But the first time, I felt watched.
A Quick Word on Safety (Plain Talk)
People always ask, “Where does my face go?” Fair. Here’s the short of it, as I saw it:
- On my iPhone, Face ID data stayed on the phone. Apple calls that a secure chip. I never saw my face get sent to Apple.
- With CLEAR, I had to make an account. I read the policy, then emailed support to delete my old scans after a trip sprint. They confirmed a few days later. That felt good.
- With ID.me, I used their help center to request deletion of my selfie after I got in. I got a notice it was removed. It took a bit, but it worked.
- At TSA and the gate, the face match is checked against your ID or your booking. The agent told me I could show a physical ID if I didn’t want the face camera. Choice helps.
If you want a deeper, plain-English explainer on how identity data flows behind the scenes, check out OpenID Book for a quick primer.
For something outside the travel bubble, you can see how UCIS handles a campus-wide digital ID in my honest take here.
And yes, the big Gates-funded pilot has its own quirks—I broke them down here.
I’m not a lawyer. I’m just careful. I like to know who holds what, and for how long. For a broader view of how civil society and governments are wrestling with these privacy questions, this overview does a great job of breaking it down right here.
Little Things I Learned
- Light helps. Face the light, not away from it.
- Glasses can smear. Wipe them. Yep, it matters.
- Add an “alternate appearance” on iPhone (with glasses, without).
- Keep your passcode strong. That’s your backup.
- Don’t enroll every random app with face login. Less is more.
- Travel with a real ID anyway. Tech naps sometimes.
The small-town test in Arkansas was a different vibe altogether—details are here.
Outside the airport bubble, digital identity is creeping into some unexpected corners of the internet too. Certain adult-oriented dating communities, for instance, are piloting quick biometric or e-ID checks to verify age and weed out bots. One early adopter is InstaFuck where the optional instant-verification flow shows how a low-friction check can boost trust, slash catfishing, and generally make meeting real people a lot safer and faster. For a more localized look, Bozeman’s branch of Listcrawler has begun weaving light-touch ID snapshots into its posting process—Listcrawler Bozeman gives you the play-by-play on how that extra verification layer is cutting down on no-shows, boosting user confidence, and keeping encounters above board.
Where It Shined Most
- Airports with CLEAR or face boarding. When you’re late, this is gold.
- Banking apps. I got in fast, but with solid security.
- Quick payments. Phone to reader, pay, done.
- Work email on the go. Face scan, in, reply, peace.
North Carolina’s pilot, for example, surprised me with how many DMV lines it killed—see the full story here.
It felt like walking through a door that just knows you live there.
Where It Fell Flat
- Bright sun straight on my face made me squint. Face ID hated that.
- Winter scarves up to my nose. No chance.
- Sharing my phone with a kid. I turned off face login for a few apps, just in case.
- Wi-Fi wasn’t the issue for phone unlock (that’s local), but some app checks still needed a signal, which slowed the moment.
Arizona’s sun-drenched kiosks had the glare problem solved, by the way—my field notes are here.
A Small Digression (But It Matters)
One time, my hands were sticky from a spilled juice box. Fingerprint on a friend’s Android phone? Nope. It wouldn’t read. Face ID on my iPhone? Worked. Another time, after a run, my face looked puffy and tired. It still matched. That told me these systems handle normal life swings pretty well. Not perfect, but not brittle.
And if you’re wondering about a pure login-only model like Illinois’ ILogin, you’ll find my take here.
Who This Is For
- Frequent flyers who hate lines.
- Busy parents who live one-handed.
- Folks who forget passwords. Often.
- People who like fast but still want control.
If cameras make you uneasy, or you don’t want another company holding your stuff, you can still use old school IDs. That’s fine too.
My Wish List
- One, clear way to delete your data—everywhere, with a simple button.
- Fewer separate selfie checks across apps. One trusted ID, many uses.
- Better mask support. Some systems learned, but we still have gaps.
- Clear signs at airports: “Face boarding here; physical ID lane there.” Make it easy to choose.
Real Talk: Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Very fast, hands free, less stress
- Good security with passcode backup
- Works across daily stuff: pay, board, log in
Cons:
- Can fail with masks, hats, bad light
- Privacy policies vary and are hard to read
- Gear can stall; you still need a plan B
Security