Soon, your driver's license may not be enough to get you through airport security in the United States. Oct. 1, 2020 is the deadline for U.S. citizens to have REAL ID-compliant state driver's licenses, a requirement passed by Congress in 2005 in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Without a compliant driver's license, those who are 18 and over won't be able to board a domestic flight, unless possessing other specific forms of acceptable identification. The thought behind this was that with standardization, it will become a lot harder to forge documents and gain access to aircraft. While the main idea of REAL ID is to better protect U.S. citizens and their identity, there is controversy over the law.

It's a moment most people have experienced. Their required to show their ID for something and then wait as the person studies both their face and the photo on the driver's license, passport, or other document, making sure the person is not an impersonator trying to pull a fast one. These days, artificial intelligence is playing a role similar to that security person, with software that allows validation of IDs remotely through digital document verification. This method allows doing business through a smartphone, and someone on the other end can make sure the person is who they say they are and that a thief hasn't stolen the identity. And that's especially important at a time when identity theft has been on the rise, says Stephen Hyduchak, CEO of Aver (www.goaver.com),