Identity authentication

Beyond fingerprints: The FBI's next generation database
New, mammoth database will include not only enhanced fingerprint capabilities, but also other forms of biometric identification like palm prints, iris scans, facial imaging, scars, marks, and tattoos — in one searchable system
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India to see a large, broad growth in expenditures on domestic security
A series of terrorist attacks, culminating in the coordinated attack in Mumbai last month, convinced both government and industry in India that more security — much more security — is required to cope with mounting threats to domestic peace; business opportunities abound for companies in IT security, biometric, surveillance, detection, situational awareness, and more
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The largest data breach ever?
In what may yet be the largest personal information breach ever, Heartland Payment Systems, which processes payroll and credit card payments for more than 250,000 businesses, announces that consumer credit card data may have been exposed
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CBP deactivates old SENTRI cards
SENTRI, launched in 1995, is a land-border crossing program that provides expedited CBP processing for pre-approved, low-risk travelers along the U.S./Mexico border
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DHS delays e-verify requirement for contractors
E-Verify was supposed to take effect 15 January, but was delayed to 20 February; system allows employers to verify their employees’ eligibility to work legally in the United States
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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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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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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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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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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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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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