Biometrics In The Coming Decade

Dialogue On Biometrics

Well, as much as I have written about, I finally came across an event which took place in New Dehli, India, between September 24^th and September 25^th of this year (yea, I know we are already in November, but I just saw this today!!!). 

This event was called the “RISE Project”, and the major thrust of it was discussing the implications of Biometrics, Ethics, Policy Implications, etc.  A major player in this Project/Conference is an organization known as “Global Security Intelligence”, and one of the panels they moderated discussed such topics.

Here are the details of what transpired in New Dehli, on a macro level:  “The recent meeting, which took place at the Hotel Taj Palace in New Delhi, was organized by the Data Security Council of India (DSCI), a self-regulatory organization created by Nasscom. The meeting addressed broad issues between the EU and India related to the vital policy issues of security, data protection, privacy and ethics. Panel topics covered concerns on the use of biometric data, current practices in privacy protection, cyber security from a government's perspective, discussions on physical security, as well as reviewed several case studies related to the secure and privacy enhancing use of biometrics. The overall goal of the event was to promote and foster international conversations between India and Europe on these topics, as well as to engage stakeholders from the US and from other Asian nations.”  (SOURCE:  http://findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/7481/).

Final Thoughts On Today’s Posting

Apparently, this was a very well attended Conference, with more than 300 or so people participating in it.  But what is even more encouraging is that this Conference held in New Dehli is going to serve as a “springboard” for future events in the near future.  For example, another Conference will be held from January 4^th-January, 5^th in Hong Kong, and other smaller Conferences were held earlier in October of this year to gauge the issues of the European countries (this was held in Brussels). 

There are also other Conferences which will be held in March and September of next year, and an overall Conference discussing all of the key issues (I am assuming on a global level) will be held again in Brussels in December of 2010.

I think it is very encouraging to see this type of dialogue taking place, especially in Europe and Asia, where there have been great advances made in Biometrics and the e-Passport.  In my view, these geographic regions have really been much more proactive than the United States with regards to advancing new types of Biometrics Technologies, especially with regards to Security Documents. 

And now it seems, these regions could very well be taking the lead in discussing the public perception and social implications of Biometrics.  Even in the face of economic gloom and doom and the prosperity of people around the world in question, it is truly great to see people come together to talk about Biometrics.

To me, it is a sign that Biometrics will enjoy a healthy future in the coming decade.  If not in the United States, probably then in Europe and Asia.  Hopefully, in the coming decade, the emphasis will not be so much on further advancing Biometrics, but rather, advancing Biometrics in terms of public acceptance and its societal implications.

Source for this Posting:  http://findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/7481/