Biometrics Security News and Information

Washington DC Becoming More Security Fortified

The Week Of The Giant

OK, I don’t mean to make this blog site just about Morpho, the Biometrics giant I just wrote about yesterday.  I do talk about other Biometrics vendors, their solutions, their products, achievements, and accomplishments and so forth.  But when these guys come out, things are for sure happening in our industry.  So, here we go . . .

The e-Passport

Morpho is providing the e-Passport infrastructure to the country of Panama:  “The government of Panama has chosen the consortium led by Morpho (Safran group) and comprised of Thomas Greg & Sons, a specialist in secure printing, and IAFIS, Morpho’s trusted partner for implementation and management of biometric projects in Latin America, to supply highly secure e-Passports. Morpho is a leading provider of electronic documents and identity management solutions.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9724/).  Some notable features of this infrastructure include:

*This implementation will be over a five year period, thus guaranteeing a good source of revenue stream and business for a good period of time;

*A combination of Facial Recognition, Fingerprint Recognition, and Signature will be used;

*The e-Passport pages consist of polycarbonate, supposedly the most resistant on the market today.

Really, nothing new about the above, but the last bullet intrigued me.  For as much as I have written about e-Passports, this is the first I have heard about this type of chemical composition to secure the pages of the e-Passport.  Hmm, maybe the Biometrics Industry can partner up with the chemical industry to help develop more secure e-Passports?  Just my thought to be pondered upon . . . .

Mobile Fingerprint ID DC Cops

Don’t think DC is nor protected enough?  Well, DC cops now have a mobile arsenal in their shed.  The details:  “When making roadside traffic stops, patrol officers in the U.S. National Capital Region are now able to quickly determine if the individuals they face pose a potential threat because of their criminal past or can be safely and confidently cited and released. The latest tool in their identification arsenal is MorphoIDent, a mobile terminal developed by Morpho (Safran group) that fits in a shirt pocket and can capture unique fingerprint images in the field. MorphoIDent provides an intuitive user interface and a large color screen that is clearly visible outdoors.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9725/). 

Some other notable features about this solution:

*Up to two fingerprints per subject can be captured per subject;

*The result of the apprehended subject is returned in less than one minute (now since we are probably talking about wireless connectivity here, that is a quick return time, hopefully it is encrypted not only for ID Theft attacks, but also against potential lawsuits from the apprehended suspect).

At this point, is up to the arresting officer if the subject they have apprehended to be brought in for further questioning, or if they should be released.  But an important lesson here is to be learned from 9/11 . . .technology can only go so far in determining if a suspect is truly a wanted person or not. 

There is also the trained human judgment involved, which is just as much or more equally important than using fingerprint recognition.

Forget The Lock - Use Your Eye

The Giant Awakened Once Again

So, how was everybody’s Memorial Day Weekend?  It was great to have a few days off from the regular routine.  It was quite a workout, for three days in a row, Anita and I spent moving stuff out of her storage unit.  Good news, we should have it done by this weekend.  And there was of course of the pool party at our new apartment building to kick off the summer season.  It was good, but by the time we got there, they ran out of food. But hey, I got a free rubber ducky.  Can’t complain about that.  As a result, there was a one or two day hiatus in my blogging.  But don’t worry, we are back at it again today.  Today, we come back to the 800 pound gorilla known as Morpho.  And yet once again, they win more accolades. 

Here we go:  “Iris technology developed by MorphoTrust USA - a Morpho company part of the Safran group - proved to be the most accurate and much faster with a smaller file size than all nearest competitors, according to a recent test conducted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The NIST Iris Exchange (IREX) III study, released in April, tested and compared the performance of the iris algorithms from 11 commercial and academic providers using several million iris records. Iris technology is used to capture images to match against an extensive database to ensure individuals are who they claim to be when conducting transactions requiring a high level of confidence and trust.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9722/).

My Take

This study had some impressive results which include the following stats:

*11 Iris Recognition algorithms were examined (may not seem like a lot, but it is actually quite a few given the lower numbers of actual Iris Recognition vendors);

*Morpho had the most accurate submissions in the top four categories;

*The algorithms presented by Morpho were deemed to be best suited for probably the world’s largest populations (comes no surprise here, as Morpho is also a leading vendor in the world’s largest Biometrics project coming out of India);

*Morpho’s algorithms were the smallest in terms of file size when compared to the rest of the pack (this just shows the robustness of the algorithms because of the inverse correlation of larger population size and smaller algorithm size).

Yes, these are truly impressive results.  Obviously, given its gargantuan size, Morpho for sure does have the capital needed to fund critical research and development in order to stay ahead of the pack.  Now, back to what I wrote before-the storage facility.  As I have written before, this organization uses the traditional lock and key approach, as well as our apartment building. I have mentioned how nice it would be to have fingerprint scanning at these places, but now that as I write this posting, I think it would be even better to have iris recognition. 

Given all that we have been through with moving stuff out of storage, any interaction with a fingerprint scanner would still be a pain in the butt.  But with iris recognition, all we would have to do is merely stand at either entrance, be verified by the system, and voila, the respective doors will open/close and lock.  Gosh, this would be so easy when we are holding a bunch of heavy boxes!!!  If we had this system, it would truly be a great luxury to have. 

Hmm, perhaps this could be a marketing tactic storage companies could use, something along the lines of holding those heavy boxes, and unlocking/locking your storage door without any interaction needed, all within just a matter of seconds.

Don't Buy Because Of A First Good Impression

Remember The Past

To all of my subscribers out there, here is a blast from the past:  Do you remember which calculator you first started using when you were in school?  My first calculator at the time was the Texas Instruments “TI-30”.  When I had first had this calculator in my hands, I was impressed with the one memory bank it had.  But then when my dad got the ever so famous TI-55 for his research, the ten memory banks it contained was 20X more awe inspiring than the mere one memory bank in the TI-30.  I only got to play with that TI-55 only just a few times.  As you reminisce about the past here, notice a common thread?  Well, that is the name of Texas Instruments.  And today, they make today’s posting. 

Here we go:  “Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) (NASDAQ: TXN) today introduced the TMS320C6748 DSP development kit for real-time analytics applications such as fingerprint recognition and face detection, enabling systems to sense and analyze biometric information for enhanced access control. The C6748 DSP development kit is also ideal for other digital signal processing applications, such as audio and communications. In addition, the C6748 DSP development kit comes pre-loaded with TI's new C6748 SYS/BIOS Software Development Kit (SDK). This scalable development kit, available for the low price of $195, enables fast and easy development on the C6748 floating- and fixed-point DSP . . . TI's new C6748 SYS/BIOS SDK includes several demonstrations for biometric analytics applications, such as fingerprint recognition and face detection, offering a starting point for developing and demonstrating the real-time intelligence of TI's C674x DSPs.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9720/)

My Take

Now upon first review of the content, my first though was “OK, another Biometrics SDK which has come out.  *YAWN*”.  OK, maybe not to that extreme, but that is how my eyes felt at the time.  But this content caught my attention for a number of reasons. 

First, and for a lame one, it has been quite a long time since I have heard anything about TI.  So, that was the big clincher.  Second, most of the SDK’s which are developed for Biometrics applications are developed by the actual vendor themselves.  This is the probably one of the rare instances I have seen where an outside entity (or 3^rd party) has developed Biometrics based SDK. 

Third, this SDK is designed specifically for fingerprint and facial recognition systems.  Wow, you might say, but the exact purpose is here is to have the ability to capture transactions in real time, and have the ability to analyze them in real time.  Most apps I have seen developed for Biometrics systems using an SDK are usually for creating plug ins, API’s, GUI’s, and backend database stuff.  In my view, it is truly refreshing to see something developed to capture this information. 

It’s one thing to download and analyze all of the FAR and FRR information at a later point in time, but it is also another to see all of this happen in real time, and to study the statistics gleaned from this angle.  Given this perspective, a security admin can see glitches and bottlenecks in the Biometrics system as they happen, and as a result, take a proactive approach. 

Fourth, I am pretty impressed in the speeds by which apps can be developed as a result of using this SDK.  For instance, it is claimed that Biometrics demos can be created in just under 10 minutes, and the actual full blown apps can be developed in just under one hour.  Of course, in my opinion, these are claims, the actual development time is a function of what the system requirements are.  Software developers always love to create things in the shortest amount of time possible, and for sure, this SDK gives them that vehicle to accomplish this task. 

Finally, it should be underscored, bolded, and italicized as to how important the software side is to create a full blown Biometrics deployment.  Remember, it’s not just the hardware that we associate Biometrics with, there is a lot more behind the scenes stuff which is just as important, if not more.  Kind of like a car.  We get impressed by the design, but under the hood, there are a lot of complexities which make it go.

US Airports: Is Chicago The Worst?

Memorial Day Weekend

I know it is only Wednesday, but are you all out there thinking about the long holiday weekend?  I for sure am.  Anybody plan to do any traveling?  We are for one not doing any travelling.  Instead, our time will be spent working on the completion of moving Anita’s stuff out of storage, and relaxing when the pool finally opens up at our apartment building, sometime over the weekend.  Believe me, I am sure there are a lot of people and tenants which will take a dip into the pool.  But as the long weekend encroaches upon us, there is one thing for sure which will be known:  Traveling by all modes of transportation available.  This includes the air and the road.  Given the high cost of gas (though it has come down in price), I bet most people will probably go by train or by the bus. 

And if you are one of the lucky ones, then flying to your vacation spot will be a luxury.  And with this excitement to Friday, there will be long lines at any mode of transportation, especially at the airports.  Passengers would love to have these wait times alleviated, so what is one tool which can be used?  Believe it or not, Biometrics!  

Here we go:  “CLEAR, the nation's pre-eminent biometric secure ID program, announced today it will launch its expedited traveler service at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on May 23, just ahead of the Memorial Day weekend travel crush. CLEARlanes will be located at every terminal at SFO, allowing every passenger on any airline to use their biometrics to speed through security . . . Since re-launching in November 2010, the CLEARlanes at Denver International Airport and Orlando International Airport have been used more than 500,000 times, collectively saving CLEAR members more than 17 million minutes. CLEAR has a base of more than 200,000 members across the U.S., including about 40,000 in San Francisco.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9718/).

My Take

Doesn’t this sound great?  But, it is important to keep one thing in mind.  This is not a service which is just offered on an airport by airport basis. Meaning, the management can’t simply say “Hey, we are going to have this here at our airport”.  Rather, it is a service in which you have to a member, which is offered throughout all of the airports. 

From that point, it is then up to the airport if they want to participate in this program, and make the lives of their customers just a little bit more bearable as they travel.  And participating in this program is not free, one has to pay almost $200 per year to join.  Is it worth the cost?  If you are a frequent traveler or travel on business, yes, the cost is justified.  But if you are like me and only fly once every few years, it is then not worth it.  But whatever it is, this program has some distinct advantages, such as:

*Greatly expedited processing times a the airports (just see the stats in the above quote);

*Ease of enrollment into the system (apparently it is all accessible at the website);

*Private sector job creation (hundreds of more jobs can be created by the implementation of this program).

The specific Biometric technology was not mentioned, but most likely it is some combination of fingerprint and iris recognition.  In the news wire from where I found this content, only San Francisco airport mentioned was used.  But how about our own airport here, namely O’Hare?  This is probably still the worlds busiest airport, and believe me we could use some airport expediting over here! 

From what I remember, I think our airport is even ranked amongst the worst for customer service and take off/landing delays.    In fact, this could probably be a good marketing tactic for this Biometrics vendor:  Introduce this service at the airports here in the US which are ranked the worst, and not just here, how about airports around the world which are also ranked the worst???

The Most Powerful Lock Ever Created?

The All Encompassing Lock

Well, over the past couple of days, you may not have noticed any postings.  It’s not for the matter of the lack of news, but rather, is moving stuff out of storage.  The storage place where my beautiful fiancé has her stuff, I have to admit, looks like it is pretty secure from the outside.  For example , there are the fair number of warning signs saying the premises is being “watched” by CCTV cameras, there is the barbed wire fence on the outside, and the  gate which resembles that of a state penitentiary.  There is also of course, large windows into the main office showing the multiple number of screens which display the video capture from the CCTV cameras. 

But beyond that, the security is pretty poor.  Barely after you enter the gate, anybody in my opinion, can simply just jump over the fencing on the sides and the back of the perimeter and do all the damage they want to do.  So in my opinion, the security is just cosmetic.  But we will leave that to the fencing experts to decide all that.  Let us now go inside.  I have to admit that  I have had made use of storage places before, and all of them have been a heavy duty combination lock built either into the door or onto the side of it.  But this facility has something different.  Although I am by no means an expert on locks, the one you use here, you merely unlock with a key, and the actual locking barrel comes out, and you have to hold onto it, or put it somewhere else. 

Now, what happens if you lose this barrel somewhere, or you misplace it, and it is after business hours, where there is no manager present on site to help you?  Hmm, my thoughts exactly. 

So, it is with this in mind, today’s topic is about locks.  A Biometrics vendor just last week announced a new type of lock:  “The security experts at FingerTech USA have recently released the Keylock 8800, a new mechanical lock which features four locking methods, a double latch, and an easy-to-use LCD screen . . . The FingerTec Keylock 8800 allows building managers to decide whether they want to unlock via a password, mechanical key, finger scanner, or some combination thereof. RFID card access can be custom built into the lock as well. The mechanical lock features two latches: a dual direction latch above and a stainless steel latch that can only be opened or closed from the inside . . . The fingerprint door lock can store up to 500 fingerprint templates, 100 passwords, and 30,000 transaction logs.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9703/).

My Take

Now, I have to admit, this is one powerful lock.  After all, you have now four different means of using it, and locking something up:

*Biometrics (fingerprint recognition);

*Username/password;

*The traditional key approach;

*A hybrid of all above.

Wow, four different ways to use a lock!  My only experience with locks has been either with the key, or using a combination.  I have written about the use of Biometrics in locking applications before, such as the Biometric safe.  But truthfully, never have I seen anything a locking mechanism with such a hybrid approach.  Not just that, its storage is also pretty remarkable, as you can see from up above in the quote, it can contain up to 500 fingerprint recognition templates, and 100 passwords, and an audit log of some 30,000+ transactions! 

Perhaps a better terminology for this would be the smart lock.  Best of all, it is also affordable to the SME owner, at about $500 or so.  While all this is great (and I am not knocking anything), my one strong concern is how much too much for a lock?  True, we do need advances to keep up with the latest threats and risks, but isn’t having 4 ways to lock a lock just 4 more points for failure to occur?  I guess I am of the type I like to see security kind to be old fashioned, simple to use, and maybe just use one or two layers.  Imagine this scenario. 

Pit this lock described here with a good ole, heavy duty “Masterlock”.  Which one will come out on top?  Personally, I think it will be the latter.  More security features means it is just more tempting for a hacker or a attacker to prey upon.  And being me, I would personally prefer the old fashioned lock rather than one with all of the latest and greatest technologies incorporated into it.

Yum, Food Which Is Catered!

The Catering Business

Well, as Anita and I approach our two months away wedding date this weekend, I have been exposed to many other parts of life which I have not been exposed to.  And, one you can guess is wedding planning.  True it is a lot of work, and requires a lot of attention to detail, especially when it comes to ordering the flower arrangements and the wedding invitations.  Detail, detail, detail.  And there is another component to this all:  choosing and picking the caterers.  Luckily for us, with the package we have chosen all of this is included, and names have been provided to us, so this process is much easier. 

So, with this theme of good times, good food and eating, and drinks, I bring you a piece of news where Biometrics is being used in the catering places, and of all places, in Europe:  “Albron, the largest independent caterer in the Netherlands, is to begin offering biometric and contactless payments in its restaurants in cooperation with Equens. Today, Albron and Equens signed a contract for the service Snel en Simpel Betalen . . . Albron will from now on be offering Snel en Simpel Betalen to its clients, and plans to implement the solution in as many of its restaurants as possible in the Netherlands. Guests at Albron's restaurants will then be able to choose whether they wish to pay biometrically (using their finger) or contactlessly (using a Near Field Communication debit card). The time and technology are ripe for biometric payments - the most user-friendly payment method on the market. Biometric payments are twice as fast as paying using a conventional debit card, and highly secure thanks to identification by means of a combination of the fingerprint and the finger's vein patterns.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9708/).

My Take

No need to rehash the obvious here, the benefits of using Biometrics is quite obvious, chief of them being very quick and easy payments, as well as great convenience provided to the customer.  This is not a totally new application in the hospitality sector, there have been news reports here and there about Biometrics being used in this regard.  So, it is still a growing market segment for our industry.  But, despite the potential, there will be some resistance to using it, especially on part of the employees who have to use this new system for payments.  Why do I say this? 

Well, I sort of correlate the hospitality business with that of the retail business.  The grocery store I frequented quite some time ago implemented Biometrics as means of paying for your groceries.  One would think that this would explode, but on the contrary, it ended in complete disaster because the customer (or even the employees) did not know how to use the system.  This all stemmed from the lack of training. 

So, in order for this application to work in the Netherlands, training will be of utmost importance to the employees.  I mean, how would it look when a waiter or waitress offered a customer to pay with their Biometric, and did not know how to use the system?  It would look extremely bad obviously, because Biometrics is primarily an image based kind of technology. 

So not only will the establishment get a bad rap, but also Biometrics.  Believe me, when it comes to the hospitality and retail industries, nobody cares what you do right-all people care about is what you do wrong.  The technology being used here is fingerprint recognition, and I think even some sort of vein pattern recognition could even be used. 

These are probably the best choices to use, as these are amongst the least intrusive for the public to use, and should not make people squeamish of a James Bond way of making payments for their food and drink.  Other technologies could work as well, such as iris recognition.  But, let people get used to paying with their fingerprint first. 

Much Needed Attention Being Given To Our Senior Citizens

Some Great News Biometrics

Well, how was everybody’s weekend?  Mine was quite awesome!  I got fitted for my tux on Saturday, and on Sunday, Anita and I took her mom out to a golf course and had a wonderful Mother’s Day brunch.  Tons of great foods.  And today, is off to a good start as well.  Back to business, you may be asking what this wonderful news about Biometrics is all about???? I have written about the use of Biometrics actually quite extensively when it comes to its applications in the medical sector.  A lot of these apps have to deal with SSO’s, and its use in protecting confidential patient information and data.  But today, I bring you an entirely new application of Biometrics in this market realm. 

Here we go:  “WanderID announces the launch of its biometric face matching product in Western Travis County. Used to identify individuals who cannot reliably communicate in case of emergency, such as Alzheimer's patients and young and/or special needs children, the company's product is now in use among area first responders, including the Lakeway Police Department . . . WanderID is an identification service for people such as seniors with memory impairment, young children, and children with special needs such as Down syndrome or autism. Caregivers enroll a loved one on the WanderID website by uploading passport style photographs of the subject. Officers use WanderID via a simple smartphone application by taking the subject's photo with their phone and uploading to the WanderID website. If there is a match of the uploaded person's photo, officers receive a confirmation on their phone, and the caregiver is notified for connection and easy, cost effective return of the lost person.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9702/). 

My Take

True, we have seen those commercials of an elderly person with some sort of medical necklace having the ability to call 911 just before they collapse (in my view, these are a little dramatic to get the point across).  But, this application as described in the above quote goes one step further.  This has to deal with people who already have an existing condition (such as severe memory impairments, Alzheimer’s Disease, Autism etc.) and using Biometrics to try confirm their identity, so that they can be returned back to their family, or their care givers. 

The Biometrics technology employed is facial recognition, and from what best I can tell, if a law enforcement sees a person out in public acting a “little goofy” (for lack of a better usage of terms), all they have to do is try to calm this person down, take a picture of this person, access the apps database, and if there is a positive math, then voila, the person can be returned fairly quickly.  And also from what I can tell, there is no fancy technology involved, all that has to be downloaded is a simple app onto the law enforcement’s smartphone. 

While this is very easy and cost effective, I can see privacy rights issues abounding here, and racial profiling by law enforcement officers.  But despite all this, this content truly brightened my day.  People with memory impairment diseases are often the over looked members of our society, both from a medical and social perspective.  It’s about time we give them the solutions they need in case they get lost somewhere or need medical help.  And what is best yet, it is Biometrics which is being used.  I mean after all, whose fault is it if people suffer from memory impairment? 

It is nobody’s and especially not the person whom has the disease.  It is just a very unfortunate set of circumstances, and the course of nature.  And even better yet, this solution can be used to help the future of our society, namely our precious kids and babies.  From a more technical perspective, although facial recognition is a perfectly viable alternative to use for this application, I think something more robust needs to be used, in order to give that extra 10% increase in confidence to that person which is trying to be verified and/or identified. 

And in this regard I think iris recognition would be a perfectly great solution to use.  In my opinion, it is far more robust than facial recognition, and the iris has much more solid and robust unique features which are not prone to degradation, erosion, or any other type of physical change, like the face can experience.

Local Recognition Is Just As Important

Accolades And More

One thing unique (good or bad, depending upon how you look at it) about the Biometrics Industry is that awards and recognition are not quite as rampant and frequent as other industries with other products and services.  But when we do get recognized, it for sure feels good.  Hmm, maybe less is better?  Most of our awards and recognition go more to the techy side of things-such as who has the best hardware, the fastest algorithms, the highest accuracy rates, etc.  Keep in mind, that most of these awards are given by government agencies, or a consortium of private businesses who have been commissioned to recognize a Biometrics Vendor and give out the award. 

Very few times do you see an actual business entity by itself give accolades to a Biometrics Vendor.  But, today, bucks the trend a little bit.  Here we go:  “Chicago-based Accurate Biometrics, Illinois' largest fingerprint service provider and national FBI Fingerprint Channeler, has been officially awarded WOSB Certification by the United States Women's Chamber of Commerce effective April 12, 2012 . . . According to the certification award, "The U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce proudly recognizes Accurate biometrics, Inc. as a Women-Owned Small Business. This firm was certified as a Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB), eligible for the WOSB Program, as set forth in 13 C.F.R., part 127 by the U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce on April 12, 2012 based on circumstances existing on the date of application February 20, 2012." (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9697/).

My Take

First, this is probably the first in years I have put up any content about a vendor based here near me!  From what I can gather, it is the largest in terms of fingerprint recognition products and solutions.  OK, to many people, getting this kind of recognition probably does not mean a heck of a whole lot.  But to me, it does.  I don’t think I have ever seen a chamber of commerce give an award like this before to anybody in our industry. Also, getting recognition at the local or state level is also a big thing for Biometrics. 

Sure, recognition at the top most levels means a lot, but getting down to the grass roots level is also another.  By getting this type of recognition, hopefully people at this local level will be more interested in Biometrics, and thus gain wider acceptance and use at the state levels.  Sure, I have always said Biometrics needs more acceptance, but I have always meant that in the macro sense. 

To get true recognition and acceptance of our tools and technologies, we need to start ground up and from there climb the ladder. Meaning, the Biometrics Industry needs to start at the local levels, then the state, then the federal levels in order to gain maximum acceptance of Biometrics as a viable security technology.

The Importance Of The Brady Law - Key Points

A Return To AFIS

This is a subject which from time to time I have written about.  To remind you again, AFIS is a huge and gargantuan database which consists of fingerprint biometric templates.  This database has been around for quite some time, and in many instances, it is being upgraded to a newer system, at both the state and federal levels.  With regards to the latter, I believe that the Federal Government has hired Lockheed Martin and perhaps a few other large Biometrics vendors for the upgrade process.  With the former, they are probably up to their own devices their accesses to this database. 

Such is the case with the state of Pennsylvania:  “The Automated Fingerprint Identification System, used by the Pennsylvania State Police, will be taken out of service for three days later this month for a full system replacement . . . The system, better known as AFIS, will be out of service from 10 p.m. Saturday, May 19, through 10 a.m. Tuesday, May 22, 2012, when the new AFIS will go online . . . While the system is replaced, the Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS), and the Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History (PATCH) system will not have full access to real-time criminal history information. Consequently, this will temporarily restrict the purchase of firearms and negate the ability to obtain criminal history checks . . . Once AFIS returns to normal operating status, all transactions submitted during the implementation phase will automatically upload into the new system.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9681/).

My Take

Here are some interesting tidbits about the use of AFIS by the Pennsylvania State Police:

*All persons who have been arrested since 1957 have their fingerprints stored into this database;

*The use of the AFIS database goes all the way back to 1990, when it replaced the manual methods of fingerprinting and identifying suspects;

*This system has been upgraded three times; the last one occurred in 2006, and with that upgrade, palm recognition templates were also incorporated into the database;

*More than 513,000+ plus fingerprint transactions are currently being conducted on this database;

*We are not talking of just an upgrade to a newer of an AFIS database, the entire database is replaced, as the current version is no longer available in the marketplace.

Now, there is nothing new with upgrading databases, obviously.  Entities at both the private and the government sectors have to do with this.  But, a couple of things caught my eye which I though deserved some attention.  First, for as long as I have been involved with Biometrics, my understanding (as well as assumption) was that AFIS was primarily used by law enforcement officials based at the federal level.  I knew some states used it sporadically, but I never completely realized that probably all states use it now, given the advances in Biometrics and much quicker searches. 

Second, while this system is being upgraded on the dates detailed above, “prohibited individuals” will not be able to purchase any sorts of firearms.  Given the Brady Law, any one who wants to purchase a firearm or weapon have to go through a pretty thorough background check.  And with the system being offline, these checks cannot be conducted, so thus, there will be no sales to these people on record.  But what about the law abiding citizens?  With the system down for upgrades, does this mean that they can purchase a firearm without having a background check conducted? 

Gads, I hope not.  No matter how law abiding a person is, in my view, everybody has to go through it to provide at least some sort of safeguards.  I hope that all of this has been thought up of ahead of time, before this implementation.  Or, could Biometrics be used and access to other databases be afforded so gun merchants and retailers won’t lose sales for those few days?  Personally, I don’t think it will hurt them.  And I for one am glad, that at least some proactive measures are being taken in this regard.

Good News Biometrics!

Some Good News

Well, if you keep track of the business news, your mind would go crazy.  One day it is the jobs #’s, the next day it is about Greece defaulting again on its debt, the ups and downs of the US dollar, another break in the stock markets (for the negative), etc.  But today, I would like to bring some good economic news to you, and what truly warms my heart is that it comes from our own industry. 

The Biometrics Vendor is known as “BIO Key International”, and here are the details:  “BIO-key International, Inc. ,a leader in finger-based biometric identification solutions, today reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012  . . . Total revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2012 was approximately $1.4 million, which was equal to the $1.4 million reported for the quarter ended March 31, 2011 . . . BIO-key’s gross margin for the first quarter of 2012 was 87% compared to 92% for the same period in 2011. Operating expenses for the first quarter of 2012 decreased 15% to approximately $859,371 compared to $1,006,253 in the comparable quarter ended March 31, 2011. Operating income for the first quarter of 2012 was $369,626 compared to $283,988 reported in the quarter ended March 31, 2011.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9695/).

As you can see from the above quote, here is a breakdown:

*It seems like revenue from year to year was pretty consistent;

*Gross margin fell by 5% year over year;

*Good news is that the operating expenses decreased sharply;

*Most importantly, net income rose by a good 51% year over year ($240,000+ in 2011 versus $363,000+ in 2012).

I have written about them before, most notably for single sign on solutions.  Although this is just one company’s snapshot of its financial picture at one period in time, hey, I think it is still wonderful news.  In a time where jobs will be the #1 topic in a hotly contested and debated presidential race, and when our own financial markets are teetering on another collapse (this is possible, and is only my view), this news is like a ray of sunshine. 

It just means that the Biometrics industry in some aspects is still thriving.  But don’t count on quick revenues and extremely high market capitalization rates, growth will be slow and steady.  But I will take that any day over huge booms and huge crashes like we saw in 2001, with the demise of the Internet bubble. 

One thing I would like to hear is how the smaller Biometrics vendors are faring in these economic times.  Really, in a way, that would give a true snapshot as to how our whole industry is doing, as it is the SME’s which drive our country’s growth and Gross Domestic Product (GDP).  But any news which comes out, I will for sure share!!!