Biometric technologies

U.K. ID cards: The "surveillance society" risk
MPs warn the government not to allow the new U.K. national ID scheme to turn the country into a surveillance society; a new report says the government “should collect only what is essential, to be stored only for as long as is necessary”
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Airlines may be forced to fit antiterror cameras in seats
The EU moves across a broad front to increase air travel safety; airlines will be forced to install spy-in-the-cabin cameras and increase the use of biometrics technology for passenger identification
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Breakthrough: Reading fingerprints even after they are gone
The name is Bond, John Bond (of Leicester University, that is): Researchers at Leicester develop a fingerprints visualization technique which would allow reading a fingerprint even after the print itself has been removed; new method would allow solving decade-old unsolved cases
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Cogent's good financial report
Company’s sales of $24.6 million and profit, excluding some costs, of 16 cents share exceeded the consensus forecast for $23 million and 9 cents, and profit more than doubled from the same period a year earlier
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Upcoming UCLA extension course: Biometric Identification Technology
UCLA Extension course offers comprehensive review of major biometric technologies and issues; the course is designed for both people already in the field and for newcomers
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Biometrics not yet ready for banking transactions
Security expert: Biometrics plays a role in banking and financial institutions — but until 2016 or so, it should be used mostly to add a third security factor to existing chip and PIN systems
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Precise Biometrics in SEK 2.3 million Middle East deal
Precise strengthens its already-strong position in Middle Eastern biometric markets by signing a contract to supply its200 MC combined fingerprint and smart card readers to an unnamed government
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Problems plague worker ID program
The TWIC program is being rolled out, but long lines at enrollment centers, jammed phones, redundant background checks, and paperwork slow the process down
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IBM joins Next Generation Identification (NGI) system team
NGI, the FBI’s new multi-modal, state-of-the-art biometrics system to be used by state, local, and federal authorities, will store fingerprints, palm prints, iris, and facial recognition information; it will accommodate other biometric modalities as they mature
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Electronic "pets" to tackle identity theft problem
Forget passwords, PINs, or even biometric security measures; a new, if futuristic, solution is offered for the problem of identity theft: Electronic pets; the pets would recognize their owners’ voiceprint, fingerprints, or walking style; researchers say it will be important for owners to bond with and nourish their electronic pets by playing with them
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Existence of new basic element for electronic circuits proven
There are three fundamental elements to electronic circuits: resistor, capacitor, and inductor; nearly forty years ago, Leon Chua of the University of California at Berkeley theorized that there was a fourth element — memristor — which had properties that could not be duplicated by any combination of the other three elements; HP researchers have now proven the existence of memristors; facial recognition biometrics will benefit
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U.K. government developing London Olympics ID card
The U.K. will host the 2012 Summer Olympic games, and the government is in the process of developing what it describes as a “pretty inclusive and far-reaching” Olympics accreditation card
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Facial recognition scans to be deployed in U.K. this summer
U.K. government plans to deploy facial recognition scanners at U.K. airport this summer; scanner will allow for automatic security checks at gates
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DHS proposes biometric airport and seaport exit procedures
Moving to implement one more recommendation of the 9/11 Commission, DHS announces that by 30 June 2009 all visitors leaving the United States will have their biometric details taken and recorded
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California passes smart-gun law
Several companies are now working on embedding palm biometrics security mechanism in guns: The gun grip will store the image of the owner’s palm, and the gun will unlock only if the image of the palm holding the gun matches the stored image; California wants this mechanism in all guns sold in the state
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