DISA working on gait recognition for multi-factor mobile authentication platform

The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) is working to enable seven different types of biometric authentication with mobile devices for identifying people in the field, outgoing DISA chief Lt. Gen. Allen Lynn said at an Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) luncheon, FedScoop reports.

Gait recognition is among the seven different biometrics DISA is attempting to use, in addition to more common authentication modalities like fingerprint and facial recognition, Lynn said. Lynn did not list all seven biometrics the agency is considering.

“What we are building is something that I think could easily transition to the commercial side,” Lynn said. “Because your identity is out there. You see all of these commercial guys perform with pieces or parts of it. If we could pull it all together so it’s kind of a platform and it’s informed by all the work we do with highly classified folks to really harden it, it’s kind of a win-win.”

The efforts have focussed on increasing the mobility of individuals in the field, for whom some authentication methods may be difficult or impractical. DISA has partnered with industry stakeholders to develop the multi-factor technology.

As previously reported, recent DISA research into unusul mobile authentication methods has included “life patterns.”

Article Topics

authentication  |  biometrics  |  Defense Information Systems Agency  |  mobile  |  multifactor authentication