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To keep up with our growing consumer dependence on technology, the tools and devices we use are becoming increasingly complex and advanced. This sophistication is matched by the cyber-criminals who are developing new methods to overcome the security measures tech firms are putting in place. Biometrics authentication is often seen as the best method to prevent the recurring high-profile hacking attacks on global corporations. But for fraudsters there remains one area of opportunity where even the most robust security barriers are struggling to succeed – and that's phishing, or the fraudulent use of valid personal details. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whether enhancing security measures or automating identity authentication, there is little doubt that biometrics is presenting new opportunities for public service organisations to excel. With the growth of globalisation, increased mobility and the societal shift toward online activities, the pressure is on for biometrics technologies to increase security and facilitate business transactions while achieving greater cost efficiencies in public services. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The summer of 2012 will see the London Olympic Games taking place, amid extraordinarily tight security arrangements. Biometric technology is playing a significant part in handling staff and athletes attending the London Olympic Park. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Biometrics offers the promise of much stronger identity verification, and identity management is becoming ever more important to economic, social and political life. The value of identity and the incidence of identity theft and fraud are on the increase and consequently one might expect rapid development and uptake of identity-based solutions, particularly in sectors where the potential value is highest. One might also expect vigorous technology and standards competition to lead towards a stable mix of ‘winners’ offering different degrees of functionality, ease of use and assurance. Instead, leading deployments seem to reflect narrow security and benefits entitlement concerns. Other applications are lagging, and emerging solutions are not necessarily diverse or technically superior. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Business is brisk in the Middle East, where national ID schemes, commercial ventures and improving security at borders are all providing impetus. Conditions may be challenging, but the ambitious approach taken by some of the region’s governments should lead to some exciting and cutting edge biometric schemes being deployed in the next few years. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Biometric technology has been piloted in some of the world''s major airports for more than 10 years. Now the technology is becoming even more pervasive, with electronic passports (ePassports) being rapidly implemented by many countries worldwide. And while ePassports are being used to beef up border security by providing a more reliable method of verifying individuals'' identities, registered traveller programmes (RTPs) are fast gaining currency as a way of keeping select members of the travelling public moving, as well as improving safety. The Silicon Trust reports on the latest developments in the RTP arena and examines the issues that lie ahead. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This month''s survey will focus on the growing use of biometrics in health care applications. It will consider healthcare applications in which biometrics have been deployed successfully and review relevant case studies. In addition it will address challenges facing implementation of biometrics in health care applications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A detailed overview of the European-wide BioSec research project was presented in last month''s issue of Btt. This article takes a focused look at the work performed by BioSec in the area of user acceptance. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

There is a diverse range of ways that biometrics can be used in the financial industry, from network access control and employee screening to its use at the ATM to verify customer identity. This survey highlights the main drivers and detractors in the market and assesses the applications that are proving to be successful hunting grounds for biometric suppliers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Iris recognition is a fast, accurate and secure biometric technique that can operate in both verification and identification modes. A relatively late starter in the biometrics field, it has had to play catch up to some of the more established biometrics over the last few years, but today it is making strong progress. The variety of cameras is increasing, costs of the devices are coming down and the emergence of large-scale projects, where the technology''s unique attributes can be capitalised upon, are helping to push iris recognition further into the limelight. With key patents expected to expire in the next few months, however, and competition waiting in the wings, the next year could prove to be interesting. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The market for livescan devices is experiencing strong growth. As well as its growing use in criminal justice applications, one of the primary reasons is the emergence of new civilian-based uses of the technology, which are helping to boost sales. However, the development of new technology is also expected to provide a robust replacement market for existing devices. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Today''s market for dynamic signature verification technology cannot be described as pulsating. However, the potential market size is something that fires the imagination, with the prospect of the technology being used anywhere where there is a need for a simple and natural way to authenticate people. The biggest challenge facing the technology suppliers is how to convince people that their technology can be of true commercial benefit and that the technology has sufficiently matured to warrant significant hardware investment. The good news is that the technology has improved in the last few years, and the price of input devices has come down further. This will certainly bolster the business case and should create a good launch pad for this biometric, especially into markets where traditional pen and ink signatures are used today. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Faced with an array of potential hazards, from terrorism and computer viruses to fraud and organised crime, the world is perceived by many to be an increasingly dangerous place. As a result, the focus on security issues has sharpened and the demand for security-related goods and services has steadily grown, giving rise to a wide and varied range of economic activities in both the government domain and the business sector. This is termed ‘the emerging security economy’, and is the title of a new report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The report looks at the growth and emergence of the security industry, the impact of advances in RFID and biometric technology, and the societal implications of the trade offs between increased economic efficiency, on the one hand, and higher levels of security, on the other. This feature is an extract from that report and focuses on the current status of and challenges ahead for the biometric industry. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This controversial opinion article questions and criticises the way the biometric business has evolved. While some good work has been done, the last 15 years has seen the industry tread water on many issues. Future efforts must be based on frank and open dialogue, where the interests of society as a whole are put first. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This is the second half of a two-part survey into the area of speaker recognition technologies. While the number of players in the market seems certain to fall significantly over the next few years, the technology itself is now achieving the sort of consistent accuracy levels that will allow it to compete against other biometrics and alternative security technologies. As well as enhanced accuracy, other enhancements are also making the end user experience easier than ever. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The prospect of new large-scale identity systems dominated the headlines in 2003 and there is no sign that this is about to change. All around the world, governments are considering putting biometrics at the heart of ambitious projects, ranging from high-tech passports and ID cards to driving licences and immigration control. This has meant the face, finger and iris recognition players – the most favoured biometrics for these sorts of project – have been working overtime to try and secure the lucrative contracts on offer. Meanwhile, other technologies are also making progress and antics on the business front have continued apace. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The human hand and finger provide the source for a number of biometric techniques with geometry-based, vein and palmprint technologies now available. Despite the availability of technologies on the increase, however, the number of companies in the market is decreasing each year. Nevertheless, the overall revenue picture remains healthy with geometry systems leading the way. Biometric market share erosion is still occurring in this sector, however, and this is a trend that will be hard to reverse. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Polish bank BPS has claimed a first in rolling out biometric ATMs. Customers of the bank can now use their fingers rather than a bank card to identify themselves when making cash withdrawals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Panasonic''s new Person Identification Mini Dock (PIMD) combines a fingerprint scanner with OCR and RFID readers. It''s targeted at mobile border control, policy and security force applications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The biometrics market in North America is set for a period of healthy growth, says a new report from Frost & Sullivan. It''s being driven by major security programmes, including national ID projects and e-passports. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Two of the key promises held out by voice biometrics are enhanced levels of security for companies using the technology and an improved experience for their customers. But how is the technology living up to the hype? And how are organisations using it in the real world? [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has reacted to concerns over the cost and necessity of iris scans which, along with all 10 fingerprints and facial images, form the biometric data underpinning India''s massive Unique ID (UID) project. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The European Commission has launched a biometric portal designed to bring together disparate sources of biometric information in order to support governments who are looking to evaluate and implement biometric solutions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The UK''s new automated immigration control scheme – IRIS – has suffered a setback in the wake of the London terrorist attacks, with enrolment for the biometric scheme now at a standstill. A Home Office spokesperson commented that the problem is a manpower issue, however, rather than relating to the performance of the high-tech iris recognition system, which went live in June this year. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Right across the world there is a drive to increase document security with biometrics. This is the first of a two-part survey into the use of biometrics in national identity cards and will focus on the European market. There has been increasing momentum in the region towards implementing biometrics, particularly given that biometric identifiers are now being introduced in passports and other ID documents in line with international requirements. Next month, Btt will focus on more ID card issues and hone in on schemes in other regions of the world. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The potential for mobile biometric devices is considerable, especially in light of certain recent technological developments. This month''s survey will take a closer look at this market sector assessing the fundamental distinctions between various types of mobile biometrics. It will also look at products that have either been recently introduced, or are slated to be released in the near future, and give an overview of some deployments that are taking advantage of the flexibility offered by mobile biometrics. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Biometric technology is growing in popularity among companies of all sizes, but are they getting the best out of these systems? This article discusses how the combination of biometrics and single sign-on can make users more productive and systems easier to manage. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The UK''s Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) has appointed 3M to develop, test and implement the UK''s first biometric passport issuance system. The new system is designed to prevent multiple passports from being issued to the same person under different identities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This month''s survey follows on from last month''s analysis of the ePassport market. With the European Union now committed to rolling out biometric passports in August next year and with a deadline extension of one year granted to US visa waiver countries (to 26 October 2006), the next 12 months will be critical for many countries around the world. In the table below we highlight a plethora of countries and report on their readiness to roll out ePassports. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Analysis of the UK Passport Service''s biometric enrolment trial gives hope that future trials will be able to perform much better, from an enrolment and verification success rate standpoint. Lessons learned throughout the trial suggest that relatively simple adjustments to the environment, equipment and procedures could help to ramp up the fairly disappointing performance figures. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The level of activity surrounding the ePassport industry is reaching fever pitch. But although deadlines are fast approaching for the introduction of biometrics into passports, much work must still be done on political, technical and business levels. This is the first half of a two-part survey looking at the pressing issues surrounding the introduction of biometric ePassports. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Hyper-spectral cameras are becoming a reality as the technology matures. This article addresses a simple question: What benefits could they provide to support biometrics? [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The BioAPI Consortium has announced that a beta version specifically designed for use with the Windows CE operating system is now available for its BioAPI standard. The launch will allow the possibility of standards-based biometric systems in mobile devices and other environments which use Microsoft''s low-footprint operating system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The USA''s first privately run registered traveller programme is about to get under way at Orlando International Airport, the busiest in Florida. The contract to design and manage the Private Sector Known Traveller (PSKT) programme was won by a team comprising Verified Identity Pass and Lockheed Martin. Verified Identity Pass is headed up by Steven Brill, the founder of Court TV and American Lawyer magazine, and has been a vocal advocate of verified ID cards since the 11 September terrorist attacks in the USA. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

With data in devices, such as mobile phones, becoming ever more valuable, so the emergence of solutions integrating biometric technology to safeguard that information is accelerating. In recent months there have been announcements using fingerprint and iris recognition technology, but the latest announcement come from Japanese corporation Omron, which is introducing a facial recognition based solution. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Following the completion of interoperability tests, the International Labour Office (ILO) has announced that a new biometric system for issuing secure identity documents to the world''s 1.2 million seafarers is ready for implementation. The new system represents a comprehensive response to the need for greater global security while guaranteeing the rights of workers in the global shipping fleet, which handles 90% of world trade today. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The well-publicised falling out over licensing agreements between LG Electronics and Iridian Technologies continues to rumble on, but a long-standing patent dispute between Iridian and South Korean company IriTech now appears to be at an end. Meanwhile, a new entrant to the iris recognition algorithm market – Smart Sensors – made itself known at the recent Biometrics 2004 show in London. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

New research has found that a majority of companies are considering the introduction of biometric technology to increase workplace security. The survey found that a staggering 55% of firms are currently considering the introduction of either iris or fingerprint recognition systems. In part this adoption is being driven by the growing adoption of biometric technology by border control and public sector organisations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Lockheed Martin has won a contract to develop the US Department of Defense''s (DoD) new Automated Biometric Identification System database that will consolidate, store, and search fingerprint data collected worldwide by the department. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The term ‘Secure Speech’ refers to applications where automated speech recognition (ASR) systems are combined with speaker verification (SV) capabilities. When integrated with enterprise contact centre infrastructure or ‘auto attendant’ applications that answer an enterprise''s main number, secure speech provides a streamlined, convenient and conversational way to validate an incoming caller''s identity. This article aims to highlight some of the market trends, applications and suppliers in this promising biometric market. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

With the biometric industry moving rapidly ahead, it is sometimes hard to see how the non-mainstream biometric technologies can hope to break into the commercial world. While it is true that some technologies are still languishing on the laboratory bench, others have managed to grasp the nettle and succeed where even some established biometrics are failing. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Government projects using biometric technology are proliferating worldwide. Many of these large-scale initiatives have been underpinned by unprecedented work in the area of standardisation. This article looks at some of these standards and projects which will benefit from their development. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

One of the world''s largest airport-based iris recognition trials has got underway at Frankfurt/Main airport. Frequent flyers travelling with Deutsche Lufthansa are now signing up in their thousands to be part of the Automated and Biometrics-based Border Checks (ABG) initiative, which is a multinational pilot project involving 18 European nations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The use of illegal weapons is an issue affecting many areas of the world. Part of the problem is the ability to be able to positively identify an individual''s authority to possess arms in the first place. The country of Honduras has come up with a clever solution using smart card technology and biometrics that will create an environment that allows the generation of secure weapons permits. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The widespread introduction of biometrically-enabled passports in the EU has taken one step closer following the European Commission''s decision to back a proposal that will make it the mandatory for member states to introduce the technology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In a move that will put its competitors on red alert, Identix has acquired a new type of biometric technology based on skin characteristics that is claimed to provide a step change in performance for its existing biometric matching engines. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

International composites company Molded Fiber Glass (MFG) has taken action to secure its company network using biometric authentication. The company will initially deploy fingerprint-based technology at its Ohio-based headquarters, followed by a nationwide roll out designed to enable 2500 users to seamlessly log on to its corporate network. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Alongside technical, administrative and cost considerations, privacy is one of the most important issues to be considered when designing a system using biometrics. This article explains the significance of a new document on privacy, which was released as part of the BIOVISION project. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]