2019 industry insight: most read biometrics and digital identity insiders guest posts

From the very beginning of 2019, biometrics industry stakeholders engaged with Biometric Update on the pressing issues of the year, ranging from legislative changes tightening the noose on biometric deployments, to trenchant debates about the use of facial recognition in policing, and new hacking methods targeting biometrics.
Below is a list of the most-read from among 34 guest posts from industry experts published on Biometric Update in 2019.
1.Facial recognition: A strategic imperative for national security
The article draws attention to the global data analysis challenge faced by intelligence agencies and law enforcement, which could affect national security if immediate action is not taken. To win the game, governments will have to come up with high-caliber AI, machine learning, and computing resources. If deployed responsibly, biometric technology and facial recognition will greatly contribute to threat detection and identity verification, as facial recognition will reportedly turn into one of the most strategic tools to support national security posture.
Find out how the U.S. should address China and Russia outperforming it and its allies on facial recognition technology, in an article by B. Scott Swann, Idemia NSS President and CEO, and James Loudermilk, Idemia NSS Senior Director for Innovation and Customer Solutions, who address a number of topics including public acceptance, criticism, and technical accuracy.
2. Biometrics beyond the lock and key
What’s next for biometrics now that it has become ubiquitous? In a guest post for Biometric Update, Saleel Awsare, SVP and GM of the IoT division at Synaptics, discusses a new phase of pervasive biometrics and gives examples of pertinent use cases that could be deployed even in the consumer home. Automatic voice identification will drive biometric innovation in the next couple of years following an increasing interest in voice assistant-enabled connected devices, Awsare believes. Read his post to learn why multifactor biometrics are a necessity, and how they can be used to pay at tolls and even drive-thru restaurants.
3. Biometrics and the future of payment transactions
Lynne Jeffery, NEC New Zealand’s Head of Public Safety Solutions, deep-dives into biometric authentication benefits for payments and the volume increase in transactions authenticated with biometric technology. By 2023, mobile biometric authentication will annually process in-store and remote mobile payment transactions worth some $2 trillion, growth driven by wide consumer adoption of biometric authentication and tech innovation. Jeffery provides the top 5 reasons to authenticate payments with biometrics and predictions for the biometric landscape in 2020.
4. Behavioral biometrics – securing digital banking without compromising on user experience
Explosive growth of digital banking is a trend driven by consumers actively using mobile banking apps and smart devices to conduct financial transactions. This growth, however, is also generating high criminal interest in mobile. With mobile malware doubling in 2018, account takeovers increasing 79 percent, and a rise in financial loss, financial institutions are upping their game with continuous multi factor authentication for identity management. In this guest post, Sam Bakken, Senior Product Marketing Manager at OneSpan, believes behavioral biometrics will disrupt FinTech. This article explains how and why organizations can use behavioral biometrics to secure digital banking and still deliver great user experience.
5. How biometric technologies will help secure the future of the automotive industry
Self-driving and autonomous cars are in the cards as we speak, but what can be done about automobile safety and security when connected devices are vulnerable to malware, ransomware and hacking?
What is the car “key” of the future? Martin Zizi, founder and CEO of Aerendir Mobile, discusses how physiological biometrics could revolutionize the future of transportation and contribute to the safety and security of the human in self-driving vehicles.
6. The war between cybersecurity and cybercrime will be fought by artificial intelligence
The battle against shape shifting malware, algorithms masquerading as humans, and ‘zombie bots’ has begun, argues Aman Khanna, VP of Products at ThumbSignIn, in a thought-provoking article on how advanced AI toolkits and image recognition algorithms are used by cybercriminals to generate effective attacks and break image-based captchas. How is cybersecurity handling the new wave of cybercrime? Check out Aman Khanna’s post for the whole picture.
Facial recognition. Friend or foe? There may be as many critics as there are supporters of the technology as it has become a commercialized innovation. Facial recognition is one among many biometric technologies embraced by the surveillance market and government, but the technology has a lot to offer in other key areas such as fighting consumer fraud, ensure dynamic regulatory compliance and improve customer experience. In her article, Melissa Doval, CEO of Kairos, discusses facial recognition advancement and its potential for good, and also harm, and where industry responsibility falls.
8. FIDO2 makes the Internet more secure, but not everyone is convinced
Weak passwords are the most common method of compromise in security chains. Hackers no longer struggle when it comes to stealing passwords as they now easily use advance attacks such as phishing, mining, and keylogging attacks. Are security industry recommendations to have longer and more complex passwords every three to six months feasible? The industry faces a real usability problem.
But FIDO Alliance might have the solution for that. While the organization believes biometric authentication could successfully replace traditional passwords, not everybody aligns with its beliefs. Read this guest post by Aman Khanna, VP of Products at ThumbSignIn, to find out why this is the ideal time for the rapid and broad adoption of FIDO standards and what the main roadblocks are to making biometric authentication ubiquitous.
9. Facial recognition needs commercial testing
This is another engaging article about facial recognition technology and how pilot programs should be structured, written by Mary Probst, Commercial Markets Manager at Gemalto, a Thales company. While mentioning that the technology is currently the center point of raging debates, overblown expectations of how it can be used for ill have led to a growing movement of individuals and organizations demanding its ban. While the U.S. is mostly limited to travel sector and smartphones in terms of pilot programs, international tests, especially led by China, show the way. Read Probst’s post to find out why she thinks the technology could be very helpful without crossing boundaries, and how commercial testing could deliver insights on responsible deployment.
10. What can we learn from the fingerprint biometric payment revolution in Asia?
Biometric-enabled payments have registered a spectacular growth in Asia. Asia is the world leader in digital wallet usage and innovation due its pragmatic approach to technology, leaving some regions lagging behind countries such as India and China. Other notable pilots are happening across the Middle East, South Africa, and the U.K., as consumers are becoming more comfortable with fingerprint scanning. Read this insightful post written by Stan Swearingen, CEO of IDEX Biometrics, to learn about advanced in fingerprint biometric technology, why Asia is leading the day, and how mass adoption can be achieved.
11. Eliminating mobile fraud with biometric authentication
While demand for mobile commerce is growing, scammers are taking advantage of mobile transactions and payments to steal user accounts and conduct fraud. With mobile purchases forecast to represent half of merchants’ total revenue by 2020, DJ Murphy, editor-in-chief of Card Not Present, trusts biometric authentication will eliminate mobile fraud and will deliver a strong defense layer against fraudsters. Read his post if you’re curious how physical and behavioral biometric tools can prevent mobile fraud.
12. What businesses need to know about the Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act
When the Illinois Supreme Court ruled against Six Flags, it opened the door for hundreds of potential lawsuits companies would face if accused of collecting biometric data without properly informing people and clear consent. Businesses and courts are now struggling with Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). Since it came into effect, there’s been a flood of class action lawsuits alleging biometric privacy law violations. In this post, Ana Tagvoryan, Jeffrey N. Rosenthal, and David J. Oberly, attorneys at Blank Rome LLP, are delving into the requirements and the impact of the decision.
Biometric Update is currently considering guest contributions for the coming year, and is interested in publishing any thought-provoking and engaging perspectives and thought leadership from biometrics and digital identity ecosystem stakeholders. Contact us if you want to share your views.
Check out our year-end coverage of the most read stories, digital ID in the Global South, as well as our most popular feature interviews, and industry predictions for 2020 as we wrap up the past 12 months, and look ahead to another year of growth and change.
Article Topics
artificial intelligence | authentication | automotive biometrics | biometric payments | biometrics | cybersecurity | digital identity | ethics | facial recognition | IoT
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