Two Is Better Than One
Yea, yea, you have heard me say it before who knows how many times, two or more layers of Security are better than one. It only makes sense right??? With redundancy, if one system fails, the others can take over. In the Biometrics Industry, this is known as Multimodal Security. This has been an up and coming trend in the last few years, as SME owners are trying to get more for their IT bucks as they can. I too have written about this on countless times, but today, in my search for some exciting news today, I came across a rather interesting type of Multimodal system.
So, here we go: “AOptix Technologies, Inc., (AOptix) (www.aoptix.com), a leading developer of advanced biometrics-based identity solutions, today announced the latest addition to their growing family of biometric products, the InSight Duo, the world’s first biometric system with simultaneous ISO standards-compliant iris and face capture. Positioned to meet the high throughput requirements of border and aviation security while providing a superior user experience, the InSight Duo delivers effortless iris and face capture within seconds from a distance of 2 meters.” (SOURCE: http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9290/).
My Take
OK, OK, I know what you are thinking, “What is so great about this???”. Well, upfront, really. It is just about the same as other Multimodal Biometrics out there. But look deeper, and you can see some differences. First, in the solutions I have written about before, the Biometric Technologies involved primarily the iris of the eye and the finger. So, as you can see, there is some proximity between these two biological parts of ourselves. But since in this solution both the face and the iris, there is a lot of closeness between the two. Really, one can’t say this to an absolute, because the eye is embedded from within the face.
But this closeness offers some benefits. Most importantly, if the customer chooses, both the iris and facial recognition template can be combined or “fused” into one (and even templates from legacy Biometric systems can be extracted as well), thus offering a what coin a “super biometric template”. And, given the unique structure of the iris, this leaves for a very powerful biometric template in terms of rich features which can be extracted. Second, because of this closeness, a single device can be offered to the customer. In the postings I have written about in the past, these solutions came as separate devices, thus making configuration that much more difficult.
Second, this Biometrics is ISO certified, which is a major QA credential. To be honest, this is the first time I have seen a Multimodal solution like this certified at such a high level. This means it can be deployed in number of mission critical areas where there are large groups of people walking around, primarily airport settings and sporting venues. As far as I know, I don’t think there are really any certifications like this meant specifically for the Biometrics Industry. In my view, there should be. After all, achieving a major QA credential can only enhance the believalability and acceptance of the end user. And more acceptance means more sales, and ultimately, more revenue (in other words $$$$$).
Comments