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Biometric authentication is a method of verifying an individual’s identity based on their physical or behavioral features.
These features are more difficult to duplicate or impersonate than standard security measures, such as passwords or security questions.
Biometric data is unique to each individual and makes it difficult for someone to gain access to the information if it is stolen.
Additionally, biometric authentication has the benefit of being more convenient for users as they do not have to remember or type in a password.
- What are the different types of biometrics and biometric authentication methods?
- What are the security threats to biometric authentication?
- How to protect your biometric information?
- Why should end-users be concerned about the increasing use of biometrics in authentication?
- What resources are available to help protect your biometric data?
1.What are the different types of biometrics and biometric authentication methods?
There are many different types of biometric authentication methods, each with its own benefits and drawbacks.
Physical Biometrics
- Fingerprint recognition: This method uses a person’s unique fingerprint patterns to verify their identity.
- Facial recognition: This method uses a person’s unique facial features, such as the distance between the eyes, nose, and mouth, to verify their identity.
- Voice recognition: This method uses a person’s unique voice patterns, such as the pitch and tone of their voice, to verify their identity.
- Iris recognition: This method uses the unique patterns in a person’s iris to verify their identity.
- Hand geometry: This method uses the shape and size of a person’s hand to verify their identity.
- Vein recognition: This method uses the unique pattern of blood vessels in a person’s hand to verify their identity.
- Retina recognition: This method uses the unique patterns in a person’s retina to verify their identity.
- DNA recognition: This method uses a person’s unique DNA sequence to verify their identity.
Behavioral Biometrics
- Signature recognition: This method uses the unique patterns in a person’s signature to verify their identity.
- Gait recognition: This method uses a person’s unique walking pattern to verify their identity.
- Keystroke dynamics: This method uses the unique pattern of how a person types on a keyboard to verify their identity.
- Mouse dynamics: This method uses the unique way a person moves and clicks on a computer mouse to verify their identity.
- Swipe dynamics: This method uses the unique way a person swipes on a touchscreen device to verify their identity.
- Speech recognition: This method uses a person’s unique speaking style and patterns to verify their identity.
- Cursor dynamics: This method uses the unique way a person moves the cursor on a computer screen to verify their identity.
2. What are the security threats to biometric authentication?
- Spoofing: This is when an attacker uses a fake version of a biometric trait, such as a fake fingerprint or a photograph of a face, to gain unauthorized access.
- Impersonation: This is when an attacker pretends to be someone else in order to gain unauthorized access.
- Replay attacks: This is when an attacker records a person’s biometric trait and then plays it back to gain unauthorized access.
- Database breaches: This is when an attacker gains unauthorized access to a database containing biometric data, potentially exposing sensitive information.
- Privacy concerns: Biometric data is often considered sensitive information, and there are concerns about how it is collected, stored, and used.
- False acceptance and false rejection: Biometric systems can sometimes fail to accurately identify or authenticate an individual, which is known as a false acceptance or false rejection.
- Biometric data can be stolen: Stolen biometric data can be used to impersonate someone or gain access to sensitive information.
- Lack of standardization: There is currently a lack of standardization in the biometrics industry, which can lead to security vulnerabilities in certain systems.
3. How to protect your biometric information?
4. Why should end-users be concerned about the increasing use of biometrics in authentication?
- Privacy concerns: Biometric data, such as fingerprints and facial recognition, is highly personal and sensitive information. If this data is accessed by unauthorized individuals, it could be used for identity theft or other harmful activities.
- Lack of control: Once biometric data is collected, end-users have no say in how it is used, shared, or stored. This lack of control over personal data can be an issue for end-users.
- Inaccuracy: Biometric systems are not always accurate and may produce false positives or false negatives. This can lead to frustration for end-users and may also result in security breaches.
- Permanent: Biometrics are permanent and cannot be changed, unlike passwords or PINs, which can be changed if compromised. Therefore, once biometrics data is stolen or compromised, it is permanently lost.
- Bias: Some biometric systems have been found to be biased against certain groups of people, such as people with darker skin tones, which can lead to discrimination and a lack of trust in the system.
- Legal concerns: There is a lack of clear laws and regulations on how biometric data should be collected, stored, and used. This can lead to confusion and uncertainty for end-users.
5. What resources are available to help protect your biometric data?
1) Books
- Deep Biometrics (Unsupervised and Semi-Supervised Learning) – by Richard Jiang, Chang-Tsun Li, Danny Crookes, Weizhi Meng, & Christophe Rosenberger
- Binary Code Fingerprinting for Cybersecurity: Application to Malicious Code Fingerprinting – by Saed Alrabaee, Mourad Debbabi, Paria Shirani, Lingyu Wang, Amr Youssef, Ashkan Rahimian, Lina Nouh, Djedjiga Mouheb, He Huang, Aiman Hanna
- Improving Android’s Device Security using Behavioral Biometrics – by Yonatan Mekonnen Abera
- Multimedia Security 2: Biometrics, Video Surveillance and Multimedia Encryption – by William Puech
- Identity Management with Biometrics – by Lisa Bock
2) Course
3) Documents
- Designing an ethical, socially accountable facial recognition system by Thales
- FACIAL RECOGNITION TECHNOLOGY: Current and Planned Uses by Federal Agencies by GAO
- Principles for Biometric Data Security and Privacy by IBIA
4) Podcasts
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- Biometrics: Privacy, Problems and Possibilities by Cyber Security Sauna
- Digital Tells by A BioCatch Podcast
- Biometrics in Cyber Security by Cyber Security Happy Podcast
- Getting Biometrics Right by Electronic Specifier
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https://cybermaterial.com/biometrics/
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This article was written by Marc R with the support of Team CyberMaterial, Sofia C. V., Nicolás P , Fabino R. D
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