Biometrics are automated methods of recognizing a person based on a
physiological or behavioral characteristic. Among the features measured
are face, fingerprints, hand geometry, handwriting, iris, retinal,
vein, and voice.
Biometric technologies are becoming the foundation of an extensive
array of highly secure identification and personal verification
solutions. As the level of security breaches and transaction fraud
increases, the need for highly secure identification and personal
verification technologies is becoming apparent.
The need for biometrics can be found in federal, state and local
governments, in the military, and in commercial applications.
Enterprise-wide network security infrastructures, government IDs, secure
electronic banking, investing and other financial transactions, retail
sales, law enforcement, and health and social services are already
benefiting from these technologies.
Applications
Biometric-based authentication applications include workstation,
network, and domain access, single sign-on, application logon, data
protection, remote access to resources, transaction security and Web
security. Trust in these electronic transactions is essential to the
healthy growth of the global economy. Utilized alone or integrated with
other technologies such as smart cards, encryption keys and digital
signatures, biometrics are set to pervade nearly all aspects of the
economy and our daily lives.
Utilizing biometrics for personal authentication is becoming
convenient and considerably more accurate than current methods (such as
the utilization of passwords or PINs). This is because biometrics:
- Links the event to a particular individual (a password or token may be used by someone other than the authorized user),
- Is convenient (nothing to carry or remember),
- Accurate (it provides for positive authentication),
- Can provide an audit trail, and
- Is becoming socially acceptable and cost effective.