The Intersection of Biometrics and Cybersecurity
October 2nd, 2019|
Picture going on vacation and and instead of your passport your face is scanned to verify your identity. This new way of verification may be the future of checking identities that countless countries are heading towards as biometrics such as facial scanners are being implemented by numerous governments around the world. While this can be difficult for some to accept more and more countries are implementing these technologies in their identity verification procedures. Becoming a focal point of biometric technology, facial recognition continues to be implemented in identity verification procedures around the globe. With such widespread use concerns are arising among the general public regarding the use of facial recognition technology. Privacy concerns and the potential dangers of facial recognition technology are concerns that continue to be discussed.
Imagine registering facial recognition in numerous applications and finding out later that images of your face are stored in countless company’s databases. This may very well be a possibility as more and more are concerned that their information is being taken without their permission. While some companies do present understandable agreement terms and disclaimers, others may not be as great at it. It is this inconsistency that causes many issues. If companies want people to use facial recognition technology, it is important that terms are presented in a clear manner. This way users are not left in the dark to determine what is being done with their information.
As questions surface about the technology’s accuracy as well as other ethical concerns, manufacturers of facial recognition technologies are faced with hard questions. Some questions include whether it is possible these technologies can mis-identify someone and if they do who pays the price? Is the manufacturer of the technology held liable in such cases or the authorities that utilized the biometric technology? As people desire answers for their concerns about facial recognition technologies companies fail to provide answers. While the technology is still new and it will take some time to determine who is liable in some cases, it is important that such questions and guidelines are set in place prior to further implementation of this technology.
Unfortunately, many of these guidelines are still being set in place. In this time there are others taking advantage of this as it is possible to hack facial recognition devices. With more and more authorities using this technology this becomes dangerous. One example would be in the environment of an airport as a wanted criminal can be identified as someone who is not a wanted criminal. By hacking a facial recognition device this can certainly be done. If this happens and passports are not verified as well issues can quickly start to arise as wanted criminals could begin to travel freely around the world.
Responsibility and security are two key words that play a part in the progression of the next generation biometric technology known as facial recognition. It is important that updates are continually pushed to patch security loopholes that may potentially be exploited and used for nefarious purposes. By having vulnerabilities patched the public as well as authorities can trust in facial recognition technologies to fulfill their function. In this way, facial recognition companies have a responsibility to make sure their products are secure for the safety of the general public.
This is why Aluf is focused on acquiring companies in both areas of Biometrics and Cybersecurity who can address and ultimately mitigate the inherent security risks of biometric applications and deployments.