Lockheed has new FBI biometric system on track
by Alan HartenLockheed Martin, a company that is behind a wide assortment of security technologies, said that it has now successfully finished a review on the design of a FBI biometrics system that will be used in the Next Generation Identification Program (NGI). The new biometric fingerprint technology will be placed into the NGI by MorphoTrak. Once completed, the final system will not only include fingerprint identification but also multiple modalities in biometrics. ...
Indian government introduces biometric clocking on
by Alan HartenIndian Home Minister Chidambaram decided that the best way to monitor and control the hours that employees work in the department is by using an attendance solution that utilises biometric time checking. The Minister stated that the problem is not with flex time, but that employees are not adequately making up time that may be lost when they show up late or have other problems with their normal work schedules. The new ...
September 1, 2009
New ultra–slim finger scanner
by Alan HartenHitachi announced on Wednesday that it has finished work on a finger vein authentication device that works off biometrics and is only about 3mm thick, which is 1/7th of the size of all competing devices. The company intends to go commercial with the device on mobiles and notebook computers in the coming two years. In the past, biometric devices had a camera mechanism that was able to capture vein pictures with one ...
August 25, 2009
Students pay for lunch with a finger
by Alan HartenBiometric technology is now being used for lunch at an Elyria, OH high school in the US. The system scans students’ fingerprints and debits their lunch purchase from their school lunch account. It replaces the more typical system of money exchanges. Sodexo, a food service company, runs the program for the Elyria school district and is hoping that other schools within the district will take note and decide to ...
August 18, 2009
$9.6 million biometric order for L-Identity
by Alan HartenL-Identity Solutions, which is based in Stanford, Connecticut has been successful as of late with their biometric division as they have received over $9.6 million in PIER mobile biometric recognition systems and handheld identity interagency detection equipment. According to sources at the company, about two thirds of all the handheld orders and all of the PIER orders will ship before the close of the third quarter. All of the orders ...
August 13, 2009
Home office ignores ID card cloning claims
by Alan HartenAdam Laurie claims that he has been able to clone the ID card made by the government to serve as a UK identity card, but despite his offers to show the Home Office how easy this process has been completed, the Home Office refuses to meet with him. Investigative journalist Steve Boggan, who worked alongside Laurie, stated that the Home Office has not made any contact about looking at the flaws ...
August 6, 2009
How can immigration biometrics work in underdeveloped countries?
by Alan HartenThe new UK Border Agency’s point based immigration system, which requires biometrics before entry to the UK is granted, could pose a problem for those travelling from undeveloped countries where biometric collection centres are extremely uncommon. However, it should be noted that even in developed countries there are not enough biometric collection centres to make it convenient for most people to send a biometric sample in a time efficient ...
July 30, 2009
Pay for a coke with your finger
by Alan HartenHitachi is set to debut a new biometric authentication technology aimed at allowing customers to purchase a soft drink from a vending machine with just their finger print. The new technology can read the finger veins and then match the customer with the credit card they have pre-registered, so that exact change is no longer needed at the vending machines. After swiping your finger the machine will simply charge the credit card ...
July 24, 2009
Biometric checks on the way for all US workers?
by Alan HartenNew York Senator Charles Schumer wants to introduce a new bill before the end of September that would force all American workers to prove they are eligible to work in the United States with biometric technology. Schumer stated that the bill will require businesses to not only validate Social Security numbers but also to run fingerprints through the system using an E-verify system that contains a biometric identifier. According to the Senator, ...
June 15, 2009
De La Rue will produce UK biometric Passports
by Alan HartenDe La Rue PLC’s Identity Systems division stated publicly that it is the selected bidder to work with the UK Passport for the Identity and Passport Service (IPS). The deal is approximately valued at upwards of £400 million. IPS conducted an international tender process and the deal involves switching to a biometric passport, which is why the contract will be valid for the next ten years. The new passport will contain fingerprint ...
June 10, 2009
Schneider’s new fingerprint ID device
by Alan HartenSchneider Electric says that the Harmony Biometric device, which protects sensitive security information, will be the answer to security in which keys are duplicated without permission or passwords are forgotten. This can cause security issues while identity is certified and passwords are retrieved or reset. The new device is the creation of both Schneider Electric and the Sagem Secuite group, which works globally with biometric identification solutions. It is specifically designed ...
February 17, 2009
GSS called in by Navies to stamp out Somali Pirates
by GSSA European navy has recently deployed a Maritime Boarding system which has been developed by Systematic of Denmark with UK based IT security consultancy firm - Global Secure Systems (GSS), and Rajant Corporation of the USA to stamp out the threat of Somali Pirates. This comes at a time when the International Maritime Bureau recently released its annual piracy report confirming the increase in piracy around the world, and particularly ...
March 15, 2008
Concerns over security of national ID register
by Isabelle ChaizeA committee of peers and MPs, the Lords and Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights, have raised question marks about the safety of the Governments proposed ID register, which will be needed for their ID card scheme as well as biometric passports. The committee's concerns have been fueled by the recent series of incidents in which various Government departments lost confidential data. In their report, they mentioned 18 occasions on which ...
January 14, 2008
Gemalto to produce biometric ID cards for Yemen
by Brian TurnerGemalto has announced that it has been selected to deliver the electronic ID cards solution commissioned by the Ministry of Interior of Yemen for the next national elections. Under the contract, Gemalto will implement the whole solution including enrolment processes, creation of a secure biometric national registry, maintenance, local support, training and integration services, as well as provide the 10 million smart ID cards that will see Yemen step into ...
March 29, 2007
Bioscrypt’s 3D DeskCam provides face scan biometrics
by Janet HarrisBioscrypt of Toronto has announced a new camera which is both a Webcam and a security system with 3D face scanning technology. 3D DeskCam comprises a 3-inch tall, half-inch wide camera, which authenticates anyone trying to access a computer by using infrared and a lens to scan their face in three dimensions. The camera uses about 40,000 identification points on a person's face, and is able to distinguish between identical twins. The ...
March 9, 2007
Biometrics authentication for Wi-Fi from Shimon Systems
by Janet HarrisShimon Systems of California, US, has developed Bio-NetGuard - a biometrics package designed to make it easy for smaller businesses to secure their Wi-Fi networks, without the need to call in specialists. According to Simon Systems, many Wi-Fi networks are misconfigured and smaller businesses rarely apply 802.1x authentication. Bio-NetGuard, a small standalone device, includes a Radius server and EAP (encapsulated authentication protocol), which works with standard fingerprint readers, either external or ...
March 8, 2007
FingerPIN system could replace logins
by Janet HarrisFingerPIN, a London and Birmingham-based provider of advanced fingerprint biometrics technology, has launched a patented system, called MatchLogon with FingerPIN, which it claims can replace the use of login passwords. The system overcomes the limitations of conventional biometric systems which are susceptible to spoofing attacks. MatchLogon with FingerPIN uses a sequence of fingerprints in a random order to provide access to a computer. In order to overcome the system an ...
February 13, 2007
Toshiba’s Handsets Enhance Laptop Security
by Janet HarrisToshiba is entering the UK market for smart phones and PDAs with the introduction of two Windows Mobile handsets. The G500 slider smart phone and G900 Pocket PC will be available under the company's Portege brand. The devices will include fingerprint scanners for added security, which can also be used to navigate menus. Toshiba is closely integrating the handsets with its laptops in order to significantly enhance laptop security. Users will ...
January 12, 2007
Eikon Fingerprint Scanner Debuts at CES
by Janet HarrisUPEK Inc, the biometric security company, debuted a fingerprint scanner - the Eikon Digital Privacy Manager - at the CES in Las Vegas. The device will be released later in 2007. The pocket-sized Eikon, which is finished in blue metal, plugs into any USB connector and includes software which matches a user's fingerprints to their application and Web page passwords. After a simple installation process - the device scans in fingerprints ...
January 3, 2007
Molecule-size Keypad Lock Developed in Israel
by Brian TurnerAccording to LiveScience website, Israeli scientists have created a keypad lock a single molecule in size. The lock only activates when it is exposed to a password, a sequence of chemicals and light. The lock was developed by organic chemist Abraham Shanzer and his colleagues at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovat, Israel. A report of their work was issued online, in December 2006, via the Journal of ...