Iowa adopts SICPA secure temporary tags to curb counterfeits

Iowa has launched a statewide system for secure, verifiable temporary vehicle tags designed to reduce counterfeiting and improve safety for officers and the public. The new tags link to dealers instead of drivers and add features meant to make fake or expired plates easier to spot and harder to reuse.

Why it matters: - Iowa’s old paper temporary tags were easy to counterfeit, creating risks for law enforcement, drivers and the public. - Fraudulent and expired temporary tags are often used nationwide to avoid speed cameras, insurance requirements, fees and police detection. - Secure tags can help officers verify vehicles faster and reduce the chance that fake plates are used in crimes or dangerous escapes.

What happened: - SICPA launched a statewide system on Jan. 1 for issuing secure temporary vehicle tags in partnership with the Iowa Department of Transportation. - The Iowa DOT selected SICPA’s temporary tag solution to improve officer and public safety. - The system replaces paper-based temporary tags that Iowa car dealers previously issued.

The details: - The new tags are linked to the dealer issuing the tag, not to the car’s driver. - SICPA maintains the dealer distribution database for the Iowa DOT. - The tags use SICPA’s proprietary multi-faceted optical technology for instant visual authentication. - Officers can use the visual features to quickly check whether a tag is fake. - The tag includes a proprietary feature that invalidates expired tags when exposed to sunlight over time. - The expiration feature is designed to make expired tags easier to identify and harder to reuse. - SICPA said the old tags were often laser-printed or even hand-written, which made them easy to counterfeit. - The release cites fatal incidents in Grand Prairie, Texas, and New Orleans involving vehicles with fraudulent temporary tags.

Between the lines: - Dealer-linked tags shift control away from individual drivers and toward a trackable distribution system. - The sunlight-based invalidation feature is meant to cut off a common reuse tactic for expired tags. - The move reflects a broader push by states to make temporary registration harder to fake as fraudulent tag use remains common.

What's next: - Iowa will use SICPA’s system as the statewide method for issuing secure temporary tags. - Officers and dealers will rely on the new verification features as the system rolls out across the state. - SICPA is expected to continue supporting the database and tag security infrastructure for the Iowa DOT.

The bottom line: - Iowa is betting that more secure temporary tags will make fake plates easier to detect and less useful to criminals.