Gaining Intelligence

Gaining Intelligence

As biometrics authentication technology proliferates, it leaves fingerprints on many sectors of society

Over the past decade, we’ve witnessed a shift from identity authentication based on signatures, PINs and identification cards, which can be easily lost or stolen, to biometrics-based identity authentication.

How does this impact the future of identity authentication? Imagine walking through airport security without waiting in line, or being able to quickly and securely get money from an ATM without having to remember a PIN. Imagine accessing your workplace without using an identification or access card. These innovations are quickly becoming realities as our world shifts from using access cards and PINs to the new digital age of secure identification and access control based on biometrics.

Today’s biometrics systems are moving identity authentication toward realtime, accurate and secure individual ID based on unique biometric characteristics, including iris patterns, fingerprint minutiae, facial structure or voice. A biometric identification system is able to quickly recognize and analyze these anatomical traits, match them against a database of templates and either grant or deny access to information or a location.

Architecture of Biometrics Systems

While biometrics systems range in their performance, power consumption and peripheral integration, the basic architectures of all systems is similar because the functions they must perform are similar. Biometrics systems typically manage sensing, feature extraction, template matching and decision output processes.

Sensing. The sensing component—often a camera, CMOS, CCD or optical sensor—captures the subject’s biometric characteristic, inputs it into the system, and converts the analog data into digital information.

Feature extraction. During this step, the processor takes information from the sensor and extracts data points to construct a template, or model, of the subject’s biometric characteristics. The algorithms that enable the processor to extract the features, such as segmentation, grey stretch, block direction and Gabor filtering, can be computationally intense and place high demands on the systems’ processing capabilities. Digital signal processors (DSPs), with their math optimized architecture, are ideal for feature extraction in biometrics applications.

Template matching. In this process, the system compares the newly generated biometric template with those stored in a database of people who are allowed access. If the template does not match an approved template in the database, the person is not granted access. To enable quick access, the processor architecture must perform high-speed template matching and quickly pass its decision onto the output device to allow or deny access within seconds.

Distributing a biometric system’s processing load across a computationally powerful DSP and a general purpose processor (GPP) platform can increase the processing efficiency, allowing for the deployment of less costly processing platforms or providing the added processing capabilities needed for more sophisticated biometric algorithms. Texas Instruments develops a variety of solutions that can address these needs.

Biometrics Today

Biometric authentication technology has significantly advanced over the last decade as the necessary computational abilities, power consumption and cost effectiveness of digital signal processing have become more sophisticated. Developers are able to integrate faster and more cost-effective processors into their systems and implement more sophisticated algorithms, all while reducing the price of their systems.

Over the next few years, biometrics technology will become even more pervasive in our everyday lives. Biometric passports have already been adopted by many countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and other European countries. These systems match the passport owner’s face against a digital template of their face that is stored in the passport.

In addition, the Department of Homeland Security has instituted the Visitor and Immigration Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) program to collect digital fingerprints and facial images of international visitors to the United States, ensuring proper biometric identification at the border. The database is shared among numerous governmental agencies. The FBI also manages its own Biometric Center of Excellence.

India, one of the most populous countries in the world, is undertaking a Unique Identification Number (UID) program to enroll all of its citizens in a biometric identity database. More than half of India’s 1.2 billion citizens are expected to be enrolled by 2014. With 20,000 enrollment sites across the country, India adds about one million biometric identities every day. The UID program is aimed at improving the government’s distribution of about $60 billion in welfare support to India’s poor and rural areas, where residents do not have proper identity documentation and have difficultly opening bank accounts.

Biometric systems input and store information on all 10 fingerprints and both irises, and take a digital photograph of the face. India’s nationwide program will certainly offer lessons to the rest of the world regarding how to implement a largescale biometric authentication program that can be trusted by the population.

“Soft biometrics” systems have recently been developed, not to authenticate the exact identity of individuals, but to identify their general demographics, including gender and age. Retail locations are using this information to target their digital advertising toward different demographic groups.

Biometrics in the Future

In the coming years, the selection of processing elements on which to base biometrics systems and safeguards for biometric databases will become even more sophisticated. Systems also will evolve into smaller form factors, including more battery-powered handheld authentication devices.

One place we expect to see biometrics applications grow in the near future is point-of-sale systems. This will be a more convenient way to pay for purchases, while making identities more difficult to steal and keeping financial information safer.

This article originally appeared in the March 2013 issue of Security Today.

Featured

  • Allegion, Comfort Technologies Implement Mobile Credentials at the Artisan Apartment Homes in Florida

    Artisan Apartment Homes, a luxury apartment complex in Dunedin, Florida, recently transitioned from mechanical keys to electronic locks and centralized system software with support from Allegion US, a leading provider of security solutions, technology and services, and Florida-based Comfort Technologies, which specializes in deploying multifamily access control, IoT devices and software management solutions. Read Now

  • Mall of America Deploys AI-Powered Analytics to Enhance Parking Intelligence

    Mall of America®, the largest shopping and entertainment complex in North America, announced an expansion of its ongoing partnership with Axis Communications to deploy cutting-edge car-counting video analytics across more than a dozen locations. With this expansion, Mall of America (MOA) has boosted operational efficiency, improved safety and security, and enabled more informed decision-making around employee scheduling and streamlining transportation for large events. Read Now

  • Security Industry Association Launches New “askSIA” AI Tool

    The Security Industry Association (SIA) has unveiled a brand-new SIA member benefit – askSIA, a conversational AI agent designed to help users get the most out of their SIA membership, easily access SIA resources and find the latest information on SIA’s training and courses, reports and publications, events, certification offerings and more. SIA members can easily find askSIA by visiting the SIA homepage or looking for the askSIA icon in the top left of webpages. Read Now

    • Industry Events
  • Industry Embraces Mobile Access, Biometrics and AI

    A combination of evolving workplace dynamics, technology innovation and new user expectations is changing how people enter and interact with physical spaces. Access control is at the heart of these changes. Combined with biometrics and AI, mobile access control has become increasingly crucial for deploying entry solutions that are seamless, secure and adaptive to user needs. Read Now

  • Sustainable Video Solution Delivered for Landmark City of London Office Development

    An advanced, end-to-end video solution from IDIS, with a focus on reducing waste and costs, has helped a major office development in the City of London align its security with sustainability objectives. Read Now

New Products

  • Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems, an industry-leading manufacturer of pedestrian and vehicle secure entrance control access systems, is pleased to announce the release of its groundbreaking V07 software. The V07 software update is designed specifically to address cybersecurity concerns and will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of Automatic Systems applications. With the new V07 software, updates will be delivered by means of an encrypted file.

  • QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    The latest Qualcomm® Vision Intelligence Platform offers next-generation smart camera IoT solutions to improve safety and security across enterprises, cities and spaces. The Vision Intelligence Platform was expanded in March 2022 with the introduction of the QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC), which delivers superior artificial intelligence (AI) inferencing at the edge.

  • ResponderLink

    ResponderLink

    Shooter Detection Systems (SDS), an Alarm.com company and a global leader in gunshot detection solutions, has introduced ResponderLink, a groundbreaking new 911 notification service for gunshot events. ResponderLink completes the circle from detection to 911 notification to first responder awareness, giving law enforcement enhanced situational intelligence they urgently need to save lives. Integrating SDS’s proven gunshot detection system with Noonlight’s SendPolice platform, ResponderLink is the first solution to automatically deliver real-time gunshot detection data to 911 call centers and first responders. When shots are detected, the 911 dispatching center, also known as the Public Safety Answering Point or PSAP, is contacted based on the gunfire location, enabling faster initiation of life-saving emergency protocols.