Facial biometrics opportunities shown as tech applied to diverse use cases

Biometric facial recognition continues to proliferate, with a new deployment at a soccer stadium in Denmark, a new casino tracking system, and goggles with advanced vision technology in development by the U.S. military. Privacy and security concerns continue to surface, however, notably in China, where facial biometric payments are increasingly common, and a U.S. entrepreneur is seeking to cash in on such worries with new biometrics-blocking wearables.

Denmark stadium deploys facial recognition

Danish soccer club Brøndby IF is using facial recognition at its Brøndby Stadium to detect fans who have previously been banned trying to enter, according to local news site DR.

The biometric system will match stadium entrants against a list of banned spectators, but the club’s Director Jesper Jørgensen hopes it can eventually be linked to a database known as the “hooligan register,” as translated by Google.

DR also reports that a local rights advocacy group has expressed concerns about the implementation, but the club’s supporters association does not share those concerns.

Compliance system for casinos

Gaming and hospitality industry video analytics provider eConnect is showcasing its new facial recognition technology, which alerts casino operators when an individual exceeds AML or FinCen thresholds, at the 2019 OIGA conference.

TITOTracker accurately identifies individuals and their activities throughout the casino, the company says, and since many transactions take place at kiosks, can also link totals and transaction amounts to individuals.

“Facial recognition in the gaming industry can benefit multiple departments, not just surveillance,” commented Ben Parks, Business Development Executive at eConnect. “Those charged with Anti-Money Laundering responsibilities, the Casino Marketing department, and even the Database Marketing team can leverage our non-intrusive facial recognition applications. eConnect can provide a set of capabilities with this technology that each property can put to use for their unique environment.”

Facial recognition goggles

Modified gaming headsets with facial recognition could soon enable U.S. soldiers to identify enemies, see live video feeds from drones, and aim weapons around corners, Defense One reports.

U.S. Army officials demonstrated the latest version of their Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS), which is currently being tested. Additional capabilities of the system include translation of foreign language street signs and creating semi-virtual training environments.

“We’re going to demonstrate very, very soon, the ability, on body — if there are persons of interest that you want to look for and you’re walking around, it will identify those very quickly,” IVAS Project Manager Col. Chris Schneider said during a U.S. Army Futures Command demonstration in Virginia.

Central bank official concerned

An official with China’s central bank is warning consumers that payments with biometric facial recognition, already common practice in the country, comes with privacy and security risks, Abacus reports.

People’s Bank of China Technology Department Director Li Wei warned that people should recognize that they are trading privacy for convenience, and also said that biometric face scans while typing in a phone number, which is a common method of multifactor payment in China, is dangerous. Some companies have not fully considered the issue, according to Li.

“Smile-to-Pay” expanded to more than 300 locations in China last year after launching in 2017.

Anti-facial recognition glasses

Chicago entrepreneur Scott Urban has launched a pair of glasses designed to block facial recognition, eye tracking, and even infrared radiation, Hack Read reports.

The IRpair and Phantom are being offered from a Kickstarter page, where they are being offered for as little as $124 to early and past supporters. As of Friday, pledged funds more than doubled Urban’s $14,242 goal. IRpair glasses block infrared light from passing through the lenses, preventing 3D IR face mapping. The Phantom glasses have a material applied to the frames which reflect IR light. IRclips are also offered to convert regular (IR-light lens mounted) IRpair or Phantom glasses to act as sunglasses with IR-dark lenses.

Article Topics

biometric payments  |  biometrics  |  casinos  |  China  |  eConnect  |  facial recognition  |  military  |  surveillance  |  wearables