On the Editor’s Desk

Had a good meeting with Integrated Biometrics at ISC West. Just when I thought biometrics, especially fingerprint, had reached the point where people were just wrapping different pieces of plastic and tin around the same old technology, here was Wallace Seaborn, CEO of IB, to set me straight.

For instance, did you know you could do “live” fingerprint reading, so that you can’t spoof the reader with a rubber finger or a dead finger? I hadn’t seen that before. IB does it with “light emitting sensor scanning technology.” They’ve also got some interesting things to say about curved surfaces with Teflon that read better (no smudging out the finger to get flat) and last longer (1.5 million touches without degradation, which seems like a lot).

Wallace also put me on to the National Biometric Security Project, an independent body that tests and certifies biometric devices based on performance standards for false acceptance rates, false rejections and failure to acquires, failure to enroll rates, and throughput rates. Apparently, IB is the only fingerprint solution to be certified thus far (which is why they pointed me in the direction of the NBSP in the first place, of course).

Does anyone know about this group? Their board of directors seems solid. But why haven’t I ever heard of this organization before?

Here’s their pitch:

NBSP, a non-profit organization, was established after the events of 9/11 with the support of the US Congress. NBSP widely supports government and private sector efforts to standardize, test, acquire, and deploy biometric technology; and to do so in an environment compatible with rational social objectives in preserving individual privacy and civil liberties.

The support of the US Congress? What does that mean? I’m not sure why I’m sounding so skeptical of this organization. I guess I figured I would have heard about them before now.