BIG BROTHER WATCH:Vascular biometrics are more than skin deep

Do you know what the back of your hand says about you? Or your finger or palm for that matter? Quite a bit ... if you are looking beyond the surface to track the pattern of veins that can uniquely identify an individual.Vascular biometrics uses infrared technology to identify an individual’s unique vascular pattern from below the surface of the skin. The process is fairly simple to use and considered one of the most accurate forms of biometrics because variations in skin (e.g. cuts, burns) and environment do not affect the reading. Once an image is captured, it can be encrypted as a template and stored for verification. Like other biometrics, vascular templates can be used in conjunction with other tokens such as smart cards, PINs or passwords and can be used in a variety of functions such as time and attendance, border control, physical access control, and banking applications.
Vascular technology pioneers
Identica Corporation is a pioneer in the vascular biometrics industry. Terry Wheeler, President and COO of Identica Holdings, Inc. has expanded the company to all of North and South America as well as Europe. According to Mr. Wheeler “vascular technology is perfect anywhere people are working with their hands.”Mr. Wheeler met Dr. Alex Choi in 2002 and began the relationship between Identica and TechSphere, Choi’s company in Asia. Identica is now the exclusive provider of the TechSphere Hand Vascular Pattern Recognition biometric solution in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean.Dr. Choi, considered one of the fathers of vascular technology, has been working in this area for several years. He got his start in vascular technology while teaching at Myongli University in Seoul, South Korea when a hand geometry device was brought to him for further research.Dr. Choi remembers, he “was reading a book about fortune telling” and the idea came to him. Rather than hand geometry, perhaps other patterns – specifically veins – in the hand could uniquely identify the individual. Eventually, Dr. Choi discovered how to extract the vascular pattern through illumination. This began his lifelong pursuit. He began with a lower end camera with infrared to capture the images.Through experiments and research, he eventually developed an algorithm and obtained a patent on his technology. This research led Dr. Choi to be the chief writer for ISO standard on vascular data interchange format (ISO 19794-9:2007).
Benefits over other biometric methods
The benefits of vascular technology over other forms of biometrics are its usability, psychological acceptance, “spoofability,” and speed, accuracy and cost.
Usability
According to Dr. Choi, “[Usability] is the greatest indicator of performance in large-scale deployments of biometrics.” The vascular readers are very easy to use and require very little training. It can be used by virtually 100% of the population.
Psychological acceptance
There is a social stigma to fingerprinting not seen in vascular technology. While some people are still weary of using a biometric system with fingerprint or iris scans, vascular technology is accepted by more users.
‘Spoofability’
Mr. Wheeler states, “vascular pattern is the only feature that resides inside the body…(which makes) it very difficult to copy so spoofing is almost impossible.” The infrared sensor examines the pattern below the surface of the skin which makes it virtually impossible to fake access control.
Speed and accuracy
It can be used quickly and accurately in all environments, even harsh environments such as work sites where workers use their hands in paint, water, dust, or construction materials.
By Jennifer Slattery,
To read more go to:
http://www.cr80news.com/library/2007/11/26/vascular-biometrics-are-more-than-skin-deep/
To learn more about Identica and vascular biometrics, visit


http://www.identicacorp.com/


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