Lately there have been mounting concerns about one of the most basic practices of traditional community security guards — swiping driver’s licenses. According to community guests, vendors, and the State, the issue is not in taking down the public information on the front of the card, but in capturing the unknown data that resides in the magnetic strip on the back.
Since scanning the driver’s license is generally the quickest way for a traditional security guard to confirm and record a visitor’s identity before allowing them inside a gated community, it’s clear why this practice has been so popular. Unfortunately for communities that employ this system, the 2013 Florida Statute 322.143 may make it illegal.
According to a recent News-Press article , a Florida attorney stated, “the statute doesn’t prohibit asking for identification and writing down the information.” The article continued, “it just prohibits swiping — reading electronically encoded data from the magnetic strip or bar code — unless the person agrees to do it.”
What’s the solution to driver’s license scanning?
Since a driver handing a license to a security guard doesn’t necessarily constitute consent to be swiped, there’s only one way to protect your community from this issue while keeping the premises secure from trespassers — the Envera Virtual Gate Guard.
Instead of using a traditional security guard that may swipe the driver’s license, the Virtual Gate Guard employs the patented Envera Kiosk System™, which uses high-resolution digital cameras to capture an image (or scan) of the front of the driver’s license.
The remotely located guard cross-references the image with the approved visitor list. Then the guard grants or denies access as necessary. The driver’s license image is also securely archived and can be retrieved if needed.
Since the magnetic strip on the back of the card is never swiped, your community avoids the legal issues of traditional driver’s license swiping, while still keeping your community safe and entry process quick.
If you want to learn more about how you can secure your community gate without the legal issues of driver’s license swiping, contact us today for your free consultation.
*Author is not an attorney.