In October 2025, the California DMV stopped putting magnetic stripes on newly issued driver’s licenses and ID cards. The update was part of a broader push to bring California in line with modern security standards.
Firearms dealers felt the change immediately.
California Penal Code section 28180 requires gun dealers and ammunition vendors to capture a purchaser’s name, date of birth, and ID number electronically from the magnetic stripe.
When there’s no stripe, there’s no swipe, and as new IDs continue to circulate, the number of cards that cannot be processed will grow.
Here’s what the regulation actually requires now, and what gun dealers in California need to do about it.
The California DOJ emergency regulation (Section 4045.2) is about accurate data capture for your DROS (Dealer Record of Sale). It’s not asking you to authenticate IDs or detect fakes. The goal is to eliminate manual entry errors and keep records clean.
Since the magnetic stripe is gone, the state now requires dealers to use a 2D barcode scanner to pull the same information from the PDF417 barcode on the back of the card.
That barcode exists on every California ID and on driver’s licenses from all 50 states.
For most dealers, the priority is to get customer data into the DROS system quickly, accurately, and without a complicated setup.
That’s exactly what the IDWedgeKB does. It works as a keyboard wedge, meaning your computer recognizes it as a keyboard.
When you click the form field and scan the barcode. There’s no need for manual typing as the device automatically enters the information. This reduces compliance risks as a transposed digit or a misspelled name in your DROS record is a paperwork liability.
The IDWedgeKB reads the 2D barcode, which is the current standard for California and every other state. Your old magnetic stripe reader is not obsolete across the board, but it cannot read the new California cards. The IDWedgeKB can handle both.
If DROS compliance is the goal, the IDWedgeKB gets you there. Explore it here or reach out to our team to make sure your shop stays compliant.
Yes, for older California IDs that still have the stripe. For any ID issued after October 2025, the stripe is not present, and you’ll need a barcode scanner or follow the DOJ backup protocols, which involve significantly more paperwork.
The barcode scan is more secure. The new California 2D barcodes include a digital security signature that makes the data harder to tamper with than the old magnetic technology.
Yes. Because it emulates a keyboard, it’s compatible with any Windows or Mac system that allows text entry into a browser or software field.
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