Biometrics

Continental student ID: Europe moving toward standard, contactless ID
The economies and societies of the member states of the European Union are becoming more and more integrated — from currency to soccer teams; the latest move is a pilot project examining continent-wide standard student ID
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Security specialist Core Systems sees U.S. prisons as opportunity
Belfast-based Core Systems provides biometric equipment to prisons in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland; it is now expanding to the United States; with a prison population of 2.2 million; “In the prisons business, the United States is the market leader,” says Patricia O’Hagan, company’s co-owner
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South Korean woman fools Japanese finger printing system
Japan spent more than $44 million dollars to install the biometric system at 30 airports; a deported South Korean woman was able to re-enter Japan by using fingerprint-altering special tape
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Britain may outsource large surveillance database
The U.K. Home Office is moving forward with a £12 billion plan for a massive database to track phone calls, e-mails, and chat conversations in the country; the Home Office said it is considering outsourcing the database’s maintenance to private firms
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U.S. air travel database fails own privacy tests
DHS privacy report says the department is in violation of U.S. law and the DHS-EU agreement on the handling of Passenger Name Record (PNR) data
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Not yet ready for prime time: RFID technology
RFID technology is incorporated into more and more documents (e-passports, enhanced driver’s licenses); trouble is, the technology still suffers from privacy and security vulnerabilities
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DHS expands biometric info collection to include green card holders
DHS will begin to collect biometric data from permanent residents of the United States and from refugees; new rule, to go into effect on 18 January 2009, will include “nearly all aliens,” except Canadian citizens on brief visits
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U.K.'s new way to prevent people from assuming identity of deceased persons
A new — and controversial — regulation allows U.K. government agencies more sharing of personal data they hold of U.K. citizens; the Home Office says one benefit of the new regulation is better prevention of fraudsters assuming the identity of dead people
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Even in tough times, IT security should not be short changed
In tough economic times, IT managers — as do other managers — look for ways to cut costs and expenses; they should realize, though, that in tough economic times IT security may become even more important than during more normal times
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U.K. businesses complacent about safety of intellectual property
A new survey finds that many companies understand the need to protect IP but fail to do anything about it
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Five myths about two-factor authentication
Too many organizations allow themselves to be vulnerable to cybercrime because of prevailing myths about the cost, inconvenience, and efficacy of two-factor authentication; close examination reveals these myths to be just that — myths
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Pentagon maintains a DNA database with 80,000 DNA profiles
The Pentagon has built a DNA database with about 80,000 DNA profiles of suspected terrorists; database has grown dramatically in the last two years (it had only 15,000 profiles in 2006)
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GAO: DHS's plans for tracking foreigners leaving U.S. needs work
GAO says that DHS has not developed accurate cost estimates for the proposed tracking of travelers leaving the U.S. and has failed to include how much the system would cost airlines and cruise lines to build
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U.K. can lead the world on biometrics
New study argues that the U.K. biometrics industry can lead the world if it were less fragmented and had an independent voice
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Unisys study shows U.S. public trusts biometrics for data protection
Privacy advocates may be worried about the proliferation of biometrics for identification purposes, but a recent Unisys survey shows that Americans are comfortable with the idea of banks and government agencies asking them for biometric data for identity verification
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