Swiss bank is first biometrics-only bank in the world
Swiss bank Pictet has done away with employee badges, passcodes, pins, and other forms of identification; from now on, all identification of employees and clients will be based on facial recognition
Here is a first: Geneva, Switzerland-based bank Pictet has become the first bank in the world to rely completely on biometrics to control access for staff and account holders. The system, built by biometrics specialist Bioscrypt, works by taking snapshots of the face to create a 3D grid with 40,000 identifiable data points, which are held on a server. Anyone entering the bank will have their face scanned and compared with records in less than a second before being allowed in.
“As what we trust to be the largest identification based biometric access control system in the world, we believe Pictet is raising the bar and becoming the model for authentication technology in the financial services industry,” stated Robert L. Williams, president of Bioscrypt.
Yes, the bank is looking for better security, with no tokens or passwords to deal with, but it is also hoping to cut HR costs as the system will link into employee attendance and timesheet calculations. The system uses 110 facial scanners along with magnetic locking doors to allow access.
