Project report

[Biometric Systems] [The world has been waiting]    [The latest and greatest technology is being brought out before our very eyes in  this new millennium and we have the chance to not only see it but use it in our  very live. This research paper will review what is going on in biometric security  technology]   

2007

Miguel Echeverria  Environments of Information Systems 

11/14/2007 

[Biometric Systems] Miguel Echeverria

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Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 3

HISTORY OF BIOMETRICS ...................................................................... 3

BIOMETRICS ............................................................................................ 4

Fingerprint identification ............................................................... 4

Hand geometry ............................................................................. 4

Eye scanning .................................................................................. 5

Voice verification .......................................................................... 5

Keystroke dynamics ...................................................................... 6

Signature recognition ................................................................... 6

Vein recognition ............................................................................ 7

Face recognition ........................................................................... 8

LEADERS OF INDUSTRY .......................................................................... 8

Schlage Products .......................................................................... 9

Ingersoll Rand Brands .................................................................... 9

Kwikset Products ............................................................................ 9

PROGRAMMING LOCKS .................................................................... 10

Software ....................................................................................... 10

Programming with PDA’S .......................................................... 10

Card Programmed ..................................................................... 10

Keypad Programmed ................................................................ 11

Wireless Access ........................................................................... 11

VIP Online Locks .......................................................................... 11

ADVANTAGES OF BIOMETRIC LOCK SYSTEMS ................................ 12

DISADVANTAGES BIOMETRIC TECHNOLOGY ................................. 12

WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS ................................................................... 13

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION ......................................................... 14

REFERENCES ........................................................................................ 15

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HISTORY OF BIOMETRICS The definition of biometric technology is the statistical study of biological phenomena (Dictionary.com, 2007). We

children from one another. During the early 1800 Europe they were using finger prints to capture felons. The industry is growing and also the need for privacy and this is why new laws and regulations continue to be developed. Biometrics has captured millions of crooks. (Brief History of Biometrics, 2007)

This paper will be focused on all of the research that I have done toward biometric security and I will try to touch on this broad subject. If I wanted I could write an entire book on biometrics in whole. But before I begin I should point out that I have had a bias opinion of this technology, due to the fact that I have dealt with in my trade as a locksmith and so I might accidently start talking about how great this technology is and what it can do for our ever changing culture.

INTRODUCTION

know that the study of biometrics dates back to 14th century. Chinese merchants were stamping children’s palm prints and footprints on paper with ink to distinguish the young

“Securing personal privacy and deterring identity theft are national priorities. These goals are essential to our democracy and our economy, and inherently important to our citizens.” Asa Hutchinson former U.S. Attorney

Main biometric systems that will be discussed:  Fingerprint

identification  Hand geometry  Eye scanning  Voice verification  Keystroke

dynamics  Signature

recognition  Vein recognition  Face recognition

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Figure 1 HandPunch 4000 developed by Inersoll Rand.

of the finger and also the shadow it casts. Then it determines the length, width, thickness and curvature of the finger itself. After doing that it will make that information into a numerical template. As you can see to the picture on the left, the person is scanning their finger underneath this house hold lock to grant them access. This particular lock can also be accessed with a key in case the scanner stops working. (ElectonicsWEEKLY, September 20, 2006)

Fingerprint identification

Hand geometry

We have known for a long time that each person has unique fingerprints that will not mach another’s. Most think that a fingerprint scanner is for identifying but it is more to authenticate the user. For example Disney theme parks use fingerprint geometry to give ticket holder access to different areas. This technology uses digital cameras and lights to measure a person’s finger geometry. When a person places their finger on a scanner it takes a picture

Much like fingerprint geometry hand and all of your fingers are also scanned and digitally imaged. This picture of a hand scanner is not only for giving access to a room but also keeps track of an employee’s time at work. Some people complain of having to use this machine because it is invading their personal space. So Ingersoll Rand, the company who developed this product has made it more appealing by using an advanced antimicrobial technology to reduce the spread of microorganisms. Making I more bacterial resistant. They have designed this to completely eliminate employee badges and also a well known problem in companies, buddy punching. This is where an employee will clock there friend in for them when they are actually out skiing. Each employee can easily be given certain time restrictions to a room.

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Whenever I see a movie that someone is using a retina scanner I have a hard time believing that it’s real. But with the use of a CCD digital camera and near infrared light can be done. A takes a high-contrast photo of a person’s iris. With the help of this infrared the scanner can capture a picture of a person’s iris making it easy to compute who is there. When the picture is taken the computer will find the center of the pupil, the edge of the pupil, the edge of the iris, and the eyelids and eyelashes. Then it translates all that info into code to analyze the patterns. This is a very accurate way of identifying someone. (Coughlin, Jan 8, 2006)

This is one of the faster growing forms of biometrics according to some studies. When someone speaks they move their mouth in a certain way and also have unique vocal cavities, thus making it impossible to exactly sound like another person. (Dong- hun, 2006) The way a voice reader works is a person will say a phrase or just say enough word into a speaker where there voice is being read by a voice spectrogram. This has the ability to read sound frequency on a vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis. Different speech sounds create different shapes and then if it matches the person will have access to an area. There could be many problems with this though,

such as a person may become ill and there voice may change. Also there a noisy background could cause problems. Another issue is that someone could use a recording to gain access. But this is why some of them have the ability to ask a random question and if the voice matches the answer it will work.

 "Irises are incredibly intricate. Like a snowflake, no two are the same", David Johnston of LG Electronics' iris technology division in Jamesburg, N.J. (Coughlin, Jan 8, 2006)



Voice verification

Eye scanning

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This is one of the newcomers to the biometric security world. I never thought that I had a unique typing pattern but according to studies done by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology it is true. Mainly two things are measured. A person dwell time and flight time, how long each key is pressed and released.

Keyboard dynamics systems can measure a person’s keyboard input up to 1000 per second. But of course in order be able to verify someone, the user must take the time to type for a keystroke dynamic system enough times so that that there patterns can be stored in a database. The bank of Utah is starting to use this on their online banking in order to indentify customers. (Key Stroke Dynamics, 2007)

change and remember it for future signature recognition. Places that this is being used today are in the IRS, pharmaceutical companies, and prisons. This technology will continue to grow in our society due to the fact that it is useful and efficient. I could see this popping up in our banks and even grocery stores. Of all the biometric verification systems, this one is the most accepted and not too intrusive to a customer.

Signature Recognition The way this technology works is a signature systems analyzes a couple different signatures. It read two things from the person signing, one the way they move the pen and two the way the signature is written (GAITS). The speed, pen pressure, direction, stroke length, and when the pen is lifted from the device are all taken into account. The device has the ability to match up the signature with ones stored into the database and if a person writes the name a little different from the first time it will detect the

 

Keyboard dynamics systems can measure a person’s

keyboard input up to 1000 per second



Keystroke Dynamics

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Our Privacy (excerpt from my past article review) Who knows what the future holds for us maybe when we arrive at the airport terminals we will be required to place our thumbs on a scanner so we can be let on to the plane. Schools are getting more and

more concerned with who is entering our schools. I could see that one day every student is required to where a bag around there neck that will let them into the building and track them where ever they are in the building. But I have to raise the question. Where does our privacy stop and the need for a secure environment begin? When will the government stop and say we are going too far for this security. Are we giving up on the trust of people? Will we one day be forced to monitor all the activities we make?

I personally feel that when it comes to having that feeling of safety there shouldn’t be much limit. I will happily do a retina scan if it means I will be safer. In my opinion there is no greater security than using biometric technology, it’s really hard to fake being someone else.



Vein Recognition This section will talk of the latest development in biometric systems. Develped in Tokyo, Japan – Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. (Biometric Watch)This picture shows what they are calling “the worlds’s first contactless biometric authentication system”. This system has the ability read palms basically. Well really its reading patterns of blood veins in the palm. Its crazy to think but just like everyone has a unique fingerprint, we also have unique vein patterns. But even more unique your veins pattern will never change like a fingerprint may. When I first came across this system I was in awe. They have truly reinvented the will and are thinking completely outside the box. Some people dislike other systems due to the fact that you have to touch it, but this one gets ride of that whole hygeine issue. Infrared light is used to capture a picture of the palm. The software then extracts patterns and compares them to others in a database. The veins absorb infrared rays, and then they show up black on the resulting image. The rest of the hand is white. The system is vertually flawless and is very simple to operate.

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Have you ever seen a movie where someone is identified in big group of people by facial recognition systems and they are able to get the bad guy? Well that kind of technology is not a fake Hollywood thing but is real. But unlike the accuracy of the Hollywood films in reality it hasn’t proven that successful. This system has been one of the most difficult and headache causing among biometric scientist. The government has tested these systems in airports and other places in the past and usually only get around a 60% accuracy rate. That number being pretty good will not be good enough to use in society. These systems work my recognizing a face and measuring distinct facial features. All of our faces have unique landmarks. There are different rises and valleys that are found on a face. The landmarks are called nodal points (Stephen Coleman, June 2000). And there are about 80 of these nodal points on our faces. Programs measure the distance between our eyes, width of the nose, depth of the eye sockets, shape of the cheekbones, and length of the jaw line. After the points are measured they are translated into code called face print. This is what will be searched in a database to find matches. This is a fast developing technology and is getting better and better every year. So don’t count this one out just yet because it will be the cause of putting lots in jail. In an article that I found during my research I found a story of a man that had been taking pictures of some anti- war graffiti in New York and a couple of months later “weirdly enough on September 11”, a couple of Homeland Security officers knocked on his door. He was accused of being part of a potential “eco terrorist” plan. They were able to find him using a facial recognition system mounted on the building. (Button, Irag a Proving Ground For Biometric technology, July 21, 2006)

Face Recognition

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“Schlage Recognition Systems provides more biometric terminals for access control than any other company in the world” according to research firm Frost and Sullivan. They make around $10 billion dollars a year just in there biometric department. They manufacture there product in Campbell, California. The United States military has seen use for their product in Iraq and Afghanistan, they were able to scan captured insurgents hands fingers and sometimes take facial recognition shots. Schlage mostly has just produced hand and finger recognition systems but are now working to expand on to other biometric technologies. I think they made a wise choice by starting out simple before moving onto the more sophisticated biometric terminals that other companies have chosen to do. The pictures on the right show both of their systems. (Schlage.com)

Ingersoll-Rand is a global industry. They have more than 125 years in the business of locks and over 55,000 employees. They make over $2 billion in annual sales. Ingersoll has established themselves in multiple markets such as Schools (secondary, colleges), airports, government facilities, healthcare facilities, retail buildings, homes, and maritime. They have been lead developers in not only the mechanical, but also developing the software needed for their biometric systems. All of the mechanics and electronics and software must work seamlessly together in order for a good product and this is exactly what they have developed. They are really pushing their facial recognition system right now. This is where the market is heading and they are jumping on the band wagon. (Ingersoll Rand)

In the article he make the points that it would be such a convenience to have this technology because you would not have to carry key or pin codes and passwords around with you. The particular item that was mentioned in this article is a deadbolt latch that anybody can install by themselves. You simply swipe your finger a crossed the bottom of the latch to unlock it. It can store hundred of people’s fingerprints. It has a key lock function on it as well so if you have any problems the door could still be open but this does raise many issues like what happens if you trusted the lock enough to leave your key inside your home all of a sudden the biometric function stops working and now your locked out of your house. This technology could be great for children. Kwikset is a leader in simple household biometric products and doesn’t mess around in the industrial market. (Kwikset)

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Some of the features that is in the software are the ability to allow a worker to only enter at certain times of the day and to also only be allowed into a room on certain days. The software organizes all of the users on the lock by departments or door. With each worker or lock user they will need a card or eyes or a face to let them in but the software can only understand code so all of that information will be turned into some kind of code that is specific to that user. In the software one can find a tab that will show all of the persons that have entered into a room and what time they entered. With wireless locks, when a person enters a room all of that information is updated automatically to the software.

This is an effective but time consuming way to program these biometric terminals such as a fingerprint scanner. All one will need in order to do this is to take the updated information off the computer and upload that information to a PDA. After that has been done the PDA now has to be taken to the terminal and plugged in somehow. First you have to tell the machine that your about to upload information either by a programming card or other device. Then the lock knows that its going to be updated so it will usually show a green light or something and know you can plug a device into the machine from the PDA. Then you simply tell the PDA to send the updated data.

One of the downfalls to this way of programming a lock is that you will need an employee to physically go around to each system and plug in the PDA and allow time for the information to be uploaded and this all takes lots of time and company money to do. And you will need to hire some kind of specialist to operate all of this. But that is what comes with security.

Programming with PDA’S and card programmed

Software

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First, some of them only have the ability to be programmed by using the terminal itself and this requires a lot of patience and work. Someone will come to the system and lay there hand on the machine itself while somebody has their hand or finger scanned in to the computer. Then they have to enter the employee’s personal information so that when scanned again the machine will know whether or not to let the person have access to a room. This is called Keypad Programmed, and it takes a lot of time. The disadvantage to this is that if a company gave to person full access which would let them enter whenever they want and then later the company doesn’t want them to be able to enter when ever, then they will have to take the time to punch in all of the correct hours using a keypad.

Second, and probably the fastest and safest way is wirelessly programming the terminals. Rather than go around terminal by terminal editing a person’s data, which takes hours, someone can sit behind a computer screen and simply edit an employee’s data right there then send out that information wirelessly to all of terminals at one time. This saves the worker lots and lots of time. The downfall to this kind of system is the cost for the wireless products, such as routers and wire and modems. But if you think of how much the company will save by not needing an employee to physically go to each terminal time and time again then it is worth the cost. There is also the need to buy the software and wirless stuff for each computer that you want controlling the biometric terminals. So if you have a big company and you don’t just want one guy controlling the access for everyone in the company then you will need two of everything.

Third, is the ability to do all of this online. No matter where you are you can get online and update an employee’s information all with the ability of the internet and maybe even your palm pilot. There are many benefits to this kind of system. For one you don’t just have one computer doing all of the work and two what if you’re not in your office and you need to let someone into a room but you’re in Germany? This is when you could easily sign onto a secure company network and send a signal to the lock to let the person in. That is pretty cool stuff. But with this system comes a great risk to external hacking. A computer hacker could gain access to a company web site and get into the software that controls all of the employee’s personal information. This could mean that they could give an employee that wants to cause trouble access to room that normally wouldn’t be allowed to get into. But there are risks with all of these systems. All somebody can do is make it really hard for someone to get in and just hope that they don’t figure out how to gain access.

In this section I will discuss the ways in which these biometric terminals are programmed. There are basically three ways in which this is done.

Wireless access and programming

Keypad Programmed

VIP Online Locks

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Biometric Type Countermeasure Could it work?

Handwriting

Forged signature Probably not. The system measures the act of writing- not the result.

Hand geometry

Exact model of the person’s hand

Probably, unless the system also performs a “liveness test,” like measuring body temperature or pulse.

Voiceprint

Recording of the person’s voice

Maybe. Some systems, especially those that are not telephone-based, can detect the noise generated during recording and playback. Others request random passwords instead of one specific phrase.

Iris Screening

Picture of the person’s iris printed on a contact lens

Maybe. This depends on the quality of the printing and whether the system performs tests that reveal the presence of the fake lens.

Vein geometry

Model of the person’s hand

Probably not, it would be extremely difficult to reconstruct and exact copy of a person’s veins using materials that the scanner would identify as real.

Here is a table of some of the problems with each biometric system and why some work better than others. Disadvantages of biometrics are the fact that they need electricity, and computers, and time to enter all the data into a database. This takes lots of money and time. And if the power fails then a company could be seriously in trouble. Also It is never 100% reliable, there are always way to get around this technology. Now I will discuss some of the advantages of biometrics.

There are many advantages to this biometric technology, such as more security and a safer world. The advantages could be as simple as a little child being locked out of their home and they could easily have their finger scanned to be let into their home, or maybe the advantage of a school needing to secure their school from an outside threat. We live in a world that is at threat of terrorist activity all the time and we are realizing the need to make our work places and school s and government building more secure from this threat. The government is pushing for this biometric technology to be reliable and accurate. There is an ever growing job market out there for people who like working with this kind of stuff.

Disadvantages

Advantages

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(findBIOMETRICS.com, 2007)

What the future holds I will discuss the information that I found in a PCWorld article in this portion of my research paper. In the article it tells how the United States I lagging behind other nations when it comes to biometrics. And how there are going to be profound changes in biometrics. It was said "No company has been making money on biometrics. We've spent the last three years proving that [biometric technology] does work and that it can work.” It talks of how the government needs to lead the way in this technology and use it in such things as enhancing border control. But even if the government started using

it in many government agencies, we would still be behind other nations (Dong-hun, 2006). One of the main disagreements that were stated in meeting where the article derived from is which one of the biometrics are the most effective, facial recognition, voice recognition, iris and retinal scanning? It also says that the companies that are chosen by the government to develop the new product will have a great advantage over the smaller companies and they will probably merge with lots of other companies. When it comes to technology the U.S. has never been able to catch up to some other nations. It would be nice to see us come ahead in the ever growing biometric technology. The nation is now realizing the potential of biometrics and now money is being made among companies. Above is a graph that I found that proves the growth of each verification and recognition system. As we get better at each system we will start to see each one even out until all are making about the same annual revenue. Right now it’s easy to see that Hand and finger scanning is leading the market but who knows for how long. Who know what will be the next big thing developed? Using my imagination I could see our smell being a neat way to identify someone. I focused my research on biometric security but I have found lots of other ways where biometrics are being used. Like a robotic baby sitter.

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Summary

I have explored all of the biometrics systems that I could find and have come to the conclusion that the future is here and there is no need to fear. I think that Universities should start classes that discuss the fields and get some classes going. There is lots of money to be made in biometrics.

We live in a world that is at threat of terrorist activity all the time and we are realizing the need to make our work places and school s and government building more secure from this threat. The government is pushing for this biometric technology to be reliable and accurate. There is an ever growing job market out there for people who like working with this kind of stuff. This would be a great profession to go into because it’s just starting to get big and I’m sure there is lots of money in it. I could see myself doing something like this one day. Who knows what the future holds for us maybe when we arrive at the airport terminals we will be required to place our thumbs on a scanner so we can be let on to the plane. Schools are getting more and more concerned with who is entering our schools. I could see that one day every student is required to where a bag around there neck that will let them into the building and track them where ever they are in the building. But I have to raise the question. Where do our privacy stop and the need for a secure environment begin? When will the government stop and say we are going too far for this security. Are we giving up on the trust of people? Will we one day be forced to monitor all the activities that we make?

I personally feel that when it comes to having that feeling of safety there shouldn’t be much limit. I will happily do a retina scan if it means I will be safer. In my opinion there is no greater security than using biometric technology, it’s really hard to fake being someone else. The more and more I read about the new aged locks, it makes me wonder why more and more people are not putting them on their homes. When I think of this school that can go on lock down in a matter of second it make me ponder on all of the school shooting and how this could help control the situation. At Virginia Tech the shooter was able to shoot some students and leave for a while and then easily enter the unlocked building to shoot more students. Yes I’m sure it costs lots of money to have something like this put in but it is worth lives. I think that our campus should spend the money and have this kind of system put on each building. As a locksmith for the school I know that it has only been done on a couple of building and it makes the building so much more secure than it ever was before. Well it’s been fun doing this research and I feel I have definitely learned a lot. I hope that my interest in biometrics doesn’t stop here but that I look into it a little deeper. But I am glad that this project is finally done and I hope it is a great introductory to the field of biometric security.

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Works Cited (n.d.). Retrieved 10 28, 2007, from Biometric Watch: http://www.biometricwatch.com/BW_20_issue/BW_20.htm Brief History of Biometrics. (2007, 12). Retrieved 12 1, 2007, from NCSC : http://ctl.ncsc.dni.us/biomet%20web/BMHistory.html Button, K. (n.d.). Biometrics & Insurgents. Button, K. (July 21, 2006). Irag a Proving Ground For Biometric technology. Insurgent 49 , 2. Coughlin, K. (Jan 8, 2006). Eye-scan security gets a closer look. The Grand Rapids Press , 1. Dictionary.com. (2007, 12 7). Retrieved 12 2007, from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/biometrics Dong-hun, L. (2006). Biometrics, as a New Technolgoy. Theory & Critique , 2. ElectonicsWEEKLY. (September 20, 2006). Biometric revolution. ElectronicsWEEKLY , 2. findBIOMETRICS.com. (2007). Retrieved 11 10, 2007, from Biometrics: The Anatomy Lesson: http://www.findbiometrics.com/Pages/feature%20articles/anatomy.html GAITS. (n.d.). Retrieved 11 25, 2007, from Signature Recognition: http://www.gaits.com/biometrics_signature.asp Ingersoll Rand. (n.d.). Retrieved 11 26, 2007, from www.ingersollrand.com Key Stroke Dynamics. (2007). Retrieved 11 29, 2007, from Western Carolina University: http://et.wcu.edu/aidc/BioWebPages/Biometrics_Keystroke.html Kwikset. (n.d.). Retrieved 11 22, 2007, from www.kwikset.com Proquest.umi.com. (2007). Retrieved 11 20, 2007, from http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=962748251&sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=1670&RQT=309&V Name=PQD Schlage.com. (n.d.). Retrieved 11 26, 2007, from www.schlage.com Stephen Coleman, P. (June 2000). Solving Cases of Missing Identity and More. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin , 2.