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Biometrics may not be the perfect solution for security, but they can be useful \u2014 as long as they\u2019re robust and well thought out. TouchID is all well and good, but you wouldn\u2019t secure a nuclear site with it. Well, movies aside, you probably should secure a nuclear site with a fingerprint, regardless. But this new system from Swiss researchers is a step in the right direction.<\/p>\n
Lambert Sonna Momo headed up a collaboration between his company, Global ID, and the \u00c9cole polytechnique f\u00e9d\u00e9rale de Lausanne (EPFL), which combines the former\u2019s biometric tech with the latter\u2019s crypto chops<\/a>.<\/p>\n On the biometric side is a 3D vein imaging tech Sonna Momo helped put together. \u201cNowadays you can easily and cheaply create fake fingerprints,\u201d he explained in an EPFL news release. \u201c2D vein recognition technology is already used throughout the world, but the system has its flaws. With 3D analysis, the risk of counterfeits is essentially non-existent.\u201d<\/p>\n Essentially, superficially similar patterns are easily differentiated when you add another dimension to the imaging. The scanner itself is relatively cheap, too \u2014 around $300 \u2014 and has been tested with a wide variety of people and skin types \u2014 it\u2019s a major consideration in biometric optics.<\/p>\n EPFL, for its part, created an equally important aspect of the system: the data handling and encryption. After all, you can\u2019t reset your fingerprint, retina or veins \u2014 once they leak, they\u2019re compromised forever. And fundamentally, privacy is important with such things.<\/p>\n