Earlier in the month, Google published a changelog for the Google Play System update for December 2022. We reported some of the changes then but also mentioned that it was just a partial changelog. Today, Google has updated it once again, giving us a better look at all the changes and additions being added.

Mishaal Rahman of Esper quickly spotted the changes, highlighting the new entries on the support page, with the first addition being for phones, where the Play Store will now automatically archive apps when more storage space is required on the handset. In addition, Find My Device will now support encrypted last-known location reports using a new "privacy centric framework" which will be available going forward.

Furthermore, there will be two additions to Wallet:

  • [Phone] An internal feature that allows checking the quality of ID images during customer identity verification for Google products.[6]
  • [Phone] Enable Digital Car Key (DCK) feature on Xiaomi.[6]

There is no mention of what kind of Xiaomi devices will be supported. But Digital Car Key support will be a significant feature for those that are able to take advantage of it. Hopefully, this will be made available to more handset manufacturers in the near future. For some time, Google has been working on getting digital IDs and licenses to become mainstream and has pushed for digitizing since the formation of the Android Ready SE Alliance.

Now, it looks like having a digital ID on your Android phone will become a reality for some, with added support for digital IDs and driver's licenses for select states. At the moment, it looks like it will only be available in Maryland, but here's hoping that more regions will adopt this feature, allowing those in the different areas to go fully digital. You can check out the full changelog by clicking the link below.


Source: Google Play System Updates support page