Biometrics Defined
The following are excerpts from Ms. Annette Starkweather's speech to the Harvard Business School Club on 10-16-01 and is reprinted with her permission.
.
You've seen some biometric based products in the James Bond movies and recently you've probably been reading and hearing a lot about biometrics in the news.
DEFINITION OF BIOMETRICS
First let's get a working definition - one that I like is: Biometrics refers to the automatic identification of a person based on his or her physiological or behavioral characteristics.
EXAMPLES OF BIOMETRICS
In addition to faces and fingerprints, we can also include your signature, your iris, your voice, your weight, facial thermograms, the length of your stride, the way you use the key pad and, of course, the famous DNA. The most popular Biometrics are face and fingerprint recognition and these are what I will talk discuss here today.
By traditional identification, we are thinking of things like magnetic and prox cards, passwords and Pin Numbers. But the bottom line is that Biometric based identification systems:
- Require the person to be physically present at the point-of-identification.
- Do not require the person to remember passwords or carry other devices such as cards, etc. which can be forgotten, lost or stolen.
WHY WOULD I WANT TO USE BIOMETRICS?
The promise of biometrics is that the technology can identify people both automatically and inexpensively. It's easy to go from that promise to thinking about security products, which are in use every day: all of which use some sort of device such as magnetic cards, passwords and keys. However, the person is never identified and the device, be it a card, password or key would work just as well in my hand or your hand.
But is there something else going on that makes security such a hot issue today?
We believe that it is just becoming clear to the public and to the Security industry that without Biometrics, there is no way of identifying someone with any level of certainty.
At the same time, a company's most valuable assets are changing from tangible property to intellectual property. For example, today, your yellow Caterpillar tractor is not your most valuable asset. If the Caterpillar is lost, the value, the down time and other variables can be calculated and insured.
On the other hand, the loss of your intellectual property, patents, processes, customer lists, formulas… even your strategic plans… may be impossible to quantify or insure. Loss of your intellectual property can put you out of business!
HOW ARE WE GOING TO USE BIOMETRICS?
A lot of the dialog about Biometrics over the next few months and years will center around how and where biometrics should be used and this brings up a lot of privacy issues.
Because we can promise our customer that we can actually identify people being granted access to their facilities, computer networks and other properties, security is a natural match. Traditional technologies cannot identify people - they just identify devices such as cards, keys and passwords and remember…they work just as well in my hand and your hand as they do in the owner's hand. Already there are some Biometric based access control products and surveillance systems on the market.
And, how can e-commerce and the Internet fulfill its potential unless people have the assurance that they know who they're dealing with? We envision that your next new computer will have a camera, a little fingerprint sensor, a browser and our FaceKey software - so that you can log into your corporate Intranet to check your 401K plan, and check on your email. Or, you might want to check your supplier's current pricing, or see if the lab report on your cholesterol is back yet. And, that's just the beginning of the things that you might be able to do.
But, just being able to identify people accurately is not enough. Businesses come in all sizes and operate in multiple locations and there are some issues that must be solved in order to bring products to the mass market.
Speed and accuracy. Fingerprint recognition, which has been around for a long time, is very accurate; however it's slow because the person's fingerprint must be compared with saved prints until a match is found. This will take about 80 to 100 milliseconds per comparison. If your company is large and using a fingerprint recognition system to control access at the front door, people won't want to wait more than two or three seconds to get in. On the other hand, face recognition is much faster; technology can look at 20,000 faces per second, but people look too much alike to use face recognition by itself. In fact, it's thought that face recognition, right now, isn't accurate enough to be used alone and requires an additional biometric.
Cost. Until recently, the hardware required for biometric based products has been too slow and too expensive for widespread use. Plus Biometric products require a lot of processing power, which usually means a powerful computer system. Companies with large installations that require access control can quickly run up a bill of $500,000+ and still not know who is actually accessing their facilities or data networks
Acceptance. Acceptance of Biometric based products has been slow; so far employees don't want this technology because it means they'll be much more accountable for their actions. And of course people worry about having their fingerprints or face on record somewhere.
Government Regulation. It is unreasonable not to expect some new laws; the area of privacy is of great public concern, and we are not predicting what will happen.
COMPETITORS
It seems that almost everyday, there is someone else doing something with biometrics. It makes one wonder just how many companies are there out there and how are they different?
First let me say that all biometric products are not created equal. Most products using biometrics today require a device such as a card, PIN or password along with the biometric. The device is necessary to either speed up the process or to increase the accuracy. This type of application is called VERIFICATION. It answers the question of - "Am I who I say I am? This is also called one to one.
To answer the question of "Who am I?" is called Identification or one to many.
According to Yahoo.com there are at least 290 plus companies that are doing something with biometrics; most of them are manufacturing hardware such as fingerprint readers or selling developer kits. To date, no one has been able to deliver a biometric product that has become a common part of the everyday business and personal life.
APPLICATIONS
But having said all of the above, how will Biometrics really be used?
For a real life example, let's take a look at how biometrics can be used here in Cappy's Restaurant…by Cappy himself, and by his family. (NOTE: Cappy's is the restaurant where this speech was presented)
- The exterior doors of the restaurant and the pantry are secured by biometric systems and fingerprint readers eliminate passwords. Cappy also stores his valuables in biometric cabinets and closets.
- Cappy doesn't need a car key anymore because the car door opens at the touch of his finger, and the engine starts when it recognizes him.
- Maid service no longer needs a key to get into Cappy's house and after the team has finished cleaning and leaves, the computer sends an email to Cappy's cell phone that the coast is clear and clean.
- Cappy, on his way to a restaurant conference in Japan, can stop for cash at an ATM machine on his way to the airport (no card required…just his fingerprint). At the airport, after being identified via biometrics at the counter, he receives his boarding pass. At the security gate, Cappy sees a couple of people being pulled aside after being matched with the airport's surveillance system.
- At the conference, all fees are paid with a credit card after the camera verifies that Cappy's face matches the face coded onto the magnetic strip on the back of the card. The hotel security system is very modern and uses fingerprint systems for security and billing at the restaurant and spa.
- In the hotel lobby, Cappy notices a child playing with a doll; the doll recognizes the girl and asks why she is frowning. The toy then invites the child to read along with her new book.
- Biometrics can also be used in Banking, Vehicle Security, Medical Records, Electronic Signatures, Toys & Games, Donor ID at blood banks.
CONCLUSION
We are excited about the benefits and opportunities that Biometrics systems can bring to the world community. We think that over time, a business can have better security, protect their intellectual property and reduce administrative costs with easy-to-use products. Consumer products will be developed to increase home security, children will play with intelligent toys and your medical records truly will really be private!!
It is going to be fun to see how this rolls out!
Annette H. Starkweather
Director of Operations & Business Development
FaceKey Corporation
225 Albany
San Antonio, TX 78209
Tel: 210-826-8811
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Biometrics Defined
The following are excerpts from Ms. Annette Starkweather's speech to the Harvard Business School Club on 10-16-01 and is reprinted with her permission.
.
You've seen some biometric based products in the James Bond movies and recently you've probably been reading and hearing a lot about biometrics in the news.
DEFINITION OF BIOMETRICS
First let's get a working definition - one that I like is: Biometrics refers to the automatic identification of a person based on his or her physiological or behavioral characteristics.
EXAMPLES OF BIOMETRICS
In addition to faces and fingerprints, we can also include your signature, your iris, your voice, your weight, facial thermograms, the length of your stride, the way you use the key pad and, of course, the famous DNA. The most popular Biometrics are face and fingerprint recognition and these are what I will talk discuss here today.
By traditional identification, we are thinking of things like magnetic and prox cards, passwords and Pin Numbers. But the bottom line is that Biometric based identification systems:
- Require the person to be physically present at the point-of-identification.
- Do not require the person to remember passwords or carry other devices such as cards, etc. which can be forgotten, lost or stolen.
WHY WOULD I WANT TO USE BIOMETRICS?
The promise of biometrics is that the technology can identify people both automatically and inexpensively. It's easy to go from that promise to thinking about security products, which are in use every day: all of which use some sort of device such as magnetic cards, passwords and keys. However, the person is never identified and the device, be it a card, password or key would work just as well in my hand or your hand.
But is there something else going on that makes security such a hot issue today?
We believe that it is just becoming clear to the public and to the Security industry that without Biometrics, there is no way of identifying someone with any level of certainty.
At the same time, a company's most valuable assets are changing from tangible property to intellectual property. For example, today, your yellow Caterpillar tractor is not your most valuable asset. If the Caterpillar is lost, the value, the down time and other variables can be calculated and insured.
On the other hand, the loss of your intellectual property, patents, processes, customer lists, formulas… even your strategic plans… may be impossible to quantify or insure. Loss of your intellectual property can put you out of business!
HOW ARE WE GOING TO USE BIOMETRICS?
A lot of the dialog about Biometrics over the next few months and years will center around how and where biometrics should be used and this brings up a lot of privacy issues.
Because we can promise our customer that we can actually identify people being granted access to their facilities, computer networks and other properties, security is a natural match. Traditional technologies cannot identify people - they just identify devices such as cards, keys and passwords and remember…they work just as well in my hand and your hand as they do in the owner's hand. Already there are some Biometric based access control products and surveillance systems on the market.
And, how can e-commerce and the Internet fulfill its potential unless people have the assurance that they know who they're dealing with? We envision that your next new computer will have a camera, a little fingerprint sensor, a browser and our FaceKey software - so that you can log into your corporate Intranet to check your 401K plan, and check on your email. Or, you might want to check your supplier's current pricing, or see if the lab report on your cholesterol is back yet. And, that's just the beginning of the things that you might be able to do.
But, just being able to identify people accurately is not enough. Businesses come in all sizes and operate in multiple locations and there are some issues that must be solved in order to bring products to the mass market.
Speed and accuracy. Fingerprint recognition, which has been around for a long time, is very accurate; however it's slow because the person's fingerprint must be compared with saved prints until a match is found. This will take about 80 to 100 milliseconds per comparison. If your company is large and using a fingerprint recognition system to control access at the front door, people won't want to wait more than two or three seconds to get in. On the other hand, face recognition is much faster; technology can look at 20,000 faces per second, but people look too much alike to use face recognition by itself. In fact, it's thought that face recognition, right now, isn't accurate enough to be used alone and requires an additional biometric.
Cost. Until recently, the hardware required for biometric based products has been too slow and too expensive for widespread use. Plus Biometric products require a lot of processing power, which usually means a powerful computer system. Companies with large installations that require access control can quickly run up a bill of $500,000+ and still not know who is actually accessing their facilities or data networks
Acceptance. Acceptance of Biometric based products has been slow; so far employees don't want this technology because it means they'll be much more accountable for their actions. And of course people worry about having their fingerprints or face on record somewhere.
Government Regulation. It is unreasonable not to expect some new laws; the area of privacy is of great public concern, and we are not predicting what will happen.
COMPETITORS
It seems that almost everyday, there is someone else doing something with biometrics. It makes one wonder just how many companies are there out there and how are they different?
First let me say that all biometric products are not created equal. Most products using biometrics today require a device such as a card, PIN or password along with the biometric. The device is necessary to either speed up the process or to increase the accuracy. This type of application is called VERIFICATION. It answers the question of - "Am I who I say I am? This is also called one to one.
To answer the question of "Who am I?" is called Identification or one to many.
According to Yahoo.com there are at least 290 plus companies that are doing something with biometrics; most of them are manufacturing hardware such as fingerprint readers or selling developer kits. To date, no one has been able to deliver a biometric product that has become a common part of the everyday business and personal life.
APPLICATIONS
But having said all of the above, how will Biometrics really be used?
For a real life example, let's take a look at how biometrics can be used here in Cappy's Restaurant…by Cappy himself, and by his family. (NOTE: Cappy's is the restaurant where this speech was presented)
- The exterior doors of the restaurant and the pantry are secured by biometric systems and fingerprint readers eliminate passwords. Cappy also stores his valuables in biometric cabinets and closets.
- Cappy doesn't need a car key anymore because the car door opens at the touch of his finger, and the engine starts when it recognizes him.
- Maid service no longer needs a key to get into Cappy's house and after the team has finished cleaning and leaves, the computer sends an email to Cappy's cell phone that the coast is clear and clean.
- Cappy, on his way to a restaurant conference in Japan, can stop for cash at an ATM machine on his way to the airport (no card required…just his fingerprint). At the airport, after being identified via biometrics at the counter, he receives his boarding pass. At the security gate, Cappy sees a couple of people being pulled aside after being matched with the airport's surveillance system.
- At the conference, all fees are paid with a credit card after the camera verifies that Cappy's face matches the face coded onto the magnetic strip on the back of the card. The hotel security system is very modern and uses fingerprint systems for security and billing at the restaurant and spa.
- In the hotel lobby, Cappy notices a child playing with a doll; the doll recognizes the girl and asks why she is frowning. The toy then invites the child to read along with her new book.
- Biometrics can also be used in Banking, Vehicle Security, Medical Records, Electronic Signatures, Toys & Games, Donor ID at blood banks.
CONCLUSION
We are excited about the benefits and opportunities that Biometrics systems can bring to the world community. We think that over time, a business can have better security, protect their intellectual property and reduce administrative costs with easy-to-use products. Consumer products will be developed to increase home security, children will play with intelligent toys and your medical records truly will really be private!!
It is going to be fun to see how this rolls out!
Annette H. Starkweather
Director of Operations & Business Development
FaceKey Corporation
225 Albany
San Antonio, TX 78209
Tel: 210-826-8811
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