BIOMETRICS
What is Biometrics?
Definition
"Biometrics is the automated identification, or verification of humanidentity through the measurement of repeatable physiological, or behavioral characteristics”
Identification:
The search of a biometric sample against a database of other samples inorder to ascertain whether the donor is already contained in, or new to thedatabase.
Verification:
It refers to the 'one to one' comparison between a sample and another to ask the question, 'are you who you say you are.'The term "biometrics" is derived from the Greek words bio (life) andmetric (to measure). For our use, biometrics refers to technologies for measuring and analyzing a person's physiological or behavioralcharacteristics, such as fingerprints, irises, voice patterns, facial patterns,and hand measurements, for identification and verification purposes.
Figure 1 Explains the meaning of definition
Identification and verification have long been accomplished by showing
something you have
, such as a license or a passport. Sometimes it alsorequired
something you know
, such as a password or a PIN. As we moveinto a time when we need more secure and accurate measures, we begin tolook at using
something you are
: biometrics.Biometrics are automated methods of recognizing a person based on a physiological or behavioral characteristic.
History of BIOMETRICS:
Chinese Precursor:
Possibly the first known example of biometrics in practice was a form of finger printing being used in China in the 14th century, as reported byexplorer Joao de Barros. He wrote that the Chinese merchants werestamping children's palm prints and footprints on paper with ink todistinguish the young children from one another. This is one of the earliestknown cases of biometrics in use and is still being used today.
European Origins:
Until the late 1800s, identification largely relied upon "photographicmemory." In the 1890s, an anthropologist and police desk clerk in Parisnamed Alphonse Bertillon sought to fix the problem of identifyingconvicted criminals and turned biometrics into a distinct field of study. Hedeveloped a method of multiple body measurements which got named after him (Bertillonage).
His system was used by police authorities throughoutthe world, until it quickly faded when it was discovered that some peopleshared the same measurements and based on the measurements alone, two people could get treated as one. After the failure of Bertillonage, the policestarted using finger printing, which was developed by Richard EdwardHenry of Scotland Yard, essentially reverting to the same methods used bythe Chinese for years.
Modern Times:
In the past three decades biometrics has moved from a single method(fingerprinting) to more than ten discreet methods. Companies involvedwith new methods number in the hundreds and continue to improve their methods as the technology available to them advances. Prices for theharware required continue to fall making systems more feasible for low andmid-level budgets. As the industry grows however, so does the publicconcern over privacy issues. Laws and regulations continue to be draftedand standards are beginning to be developed. While no other biometric hasyet reached the breadth of use of fingerprinting, some are beginning to beused in both legal and business areas
WORKING PRINCIPLE OF BIOMETRICS
Biometric devices consist of a reader or scanning device, software thatconverts the gathered information into digital form, and a database thatstores the biometric data for comparison with previous records. Whenconverting the biometric input, the software identifies specific points of data as match points. The match points are processed using an algorithminto a value that can be compared with biometric data in the database.All Biometric authentications require comparing a registered or enrolled biometric sample (biometric template or identifier) against a newlycaptured biometric sample (for example, a fingerprint captured during alogin).
Enrollment Mode :
A sample of the biometric trait is captured, processed by a computer, andstored for later comparison. Biometric recognition can be used inIdentification
mode, where the biometric system identifies a person fromthe entire enrolled
population by searching a database for a match basedsolely on the biometric. For example, an entire database can be searched toverify a person has not applied for entitlement benefits under two differentnames. This is sometimes called “one-to-many” matching.
Verification Mode
In this mode biometric system authenticates a person’s claimed identityfrom their previously enrolled pattern. This is also called “one-to-one”matching. In most computer access or network access environments,verification mode would be used. A user enters an account, user name, or
inserts a token such as a smart card, but instead of entering a password, asimple glance at a camera is enough to authenticate the user.
TYPES OF BIOMETRICS:
There are
two
types of biometrics:
behavioral and physical.Behavioral biometrics
- Used for verification .
Physical biometrics
- Used for either identification or verification.
Physical biometrics

Fingerprint
- Analyzing fingertip patterns.
Facial Recognition
- Measuring facial characteristics.
Hand Geometry
- Measuring the shape of the hand.
Iris recognition
- Analyzing features of colored ring of the eye.
Vascular Patterns
- Analyzing vein patterns.
Retinal Scan
- Analyzing blood vessels in the eye.
Bertillonage
- Measuring body lengths (no longer used).
Behavioral biometrics:
Speaker Recognition
- Analyzing vocal behavior.
Signature
- Analyzing signature dynamics.
Keystroke
- Measuring the time spacing of typed words
CHARACTERISTICS OF BIOMETRICS:
Biometric characteristics can be divided in two main classes, as representedin figure on the right
Physiological
are related to the shape of the body. The oldest traits,that have been used for more than 100 years, are fingerprints. Other examples are face recognition, hand geometry and iris recognition
Behavioral
are related to the behavior of a person. The firstcharacteristic to be used, still widely used today, is the signature. Moremodern approaches are the study of keystroke dynamics and of voice.
FUTURE OUTLOOK:
According to most experts, the future of biometrics is dependant upon twocritical areas: standardization and the use of hybrid technologies
Standardization:
Currently, the biometrics industry is very fragmented, with more than 150companies with their own proprietary systems and methodologies.Standards have only recently been established in order to provide directionfor the development of a common interface that will allow for shared biometric templates. The BioAPI standard created by the BioAPIConsortium, a group of more than 60 vendors and government agencies,defines a common structure for interfacing with biometrics. Yet,competitive forces remain as technology giants like Microsoft haveabandoned the consortium and the BioAPI standard in order to developtheir own proprietary software standards. The development and acceptanceof a primary standard is critical for the growth and applicability of the biometrics industry. Only after the technological standard is moreestablished can systems integrate and interact efficiently
Hybrid Technologies:
One of the critical concerns with the use of biometric technologies is thatof privacy and security of stored personal biometric data. To have personaldata stored in a centralized database leaves the information potentially opento theft or compromise. The concept of combining smart card or public keyinfrastructures with biometric readers where the biometric template is
stored on an individually controlled key has been suggested as a solutionfor the privacy concern and is considered by some critical to theadvancement of biometric applications.Biometrics is a powerful combination of science and technology that can be used to protect and secure our most valuable information and property.The future holds no limits for this industry as more applications are found.Further, the technology itself continues to improve in terms of applicationand accuracy. From the application of total body scanning for highestsecurity areas to speed and accuracy of identification when shopping on-line, the applications are boundless.Imagine a world where interstate air travel is allowed automatically via afull body scan that not only verifies identity but simultaneously searchesfor insecure or illegal paraphernalia. Where access to one is bank or creditaccounts is only granted after identification via iris or retina scan. Where ashopping trip is made possible by a vehicle that operates only with biometric verification of ownership and payment is made via a fingerprintscan that links directly to one is credit account.In the future, we will live in a faster paced, more secure world whereverification of one is identity is critical for daily activities. While somemight argue that privacy and personal "freedom" are sacrificed with thislevel of control, most believe that it is the necessary price for a secureworld environment