BixeLab introduces independent biometrics testing services with launch event

BixeLab has launched its biometrics testing services, including presentation attack detection (PAD) evaluation, and will soon provide NIST- and ISO-accredited independent third-party testing to organizations around the world.

The lab is currently an applicant to the NIST National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program, which builds on its existing services to provide confidence that biometric technology is accurate, unbiased, and detects spoof attacks.

“What we look at is that relationship, really, between vulnerability and liveness and those quality factors,” BixeLab Laboratory Manager Stewart Pope said in a launch event.

The lab’s array of artifacts for different biometric modalities was described, along with the datasets it has at its disposal.

Testing programs offered by BixeLab address a range of different aspects of biometric performance.

For biometric performance, BixeLab tests to the ISO/IEC 19795 standard in three different types of evaluations. Scenario evaluations typically involve live test subjects, and can uncover problems, vulnerabilities not necessarily found through other evaluations, according to Pope.

Technology evaluation testing was compared to a NIST FRVT-style evaluation, and is intended to provide a high degree of confidence in a solution’s raw biometric matching performance. Each of those testing services comes with a report to guide further technology development or algorithm training.

The third type of 19795 test is an operational evaluation based on data outputs can help identify and resolve performance issues.

A demonstration of some elements of a scenario evaluation followed, with an example of how the affects of different lighting conditions on biometric performance are measured and analyzed.

The other side of BixeLab’s testing services is PAD testing. The lab has provided customized expert PAD testing for years, and it will also provide testing in compliance with the ISO/IEC 30107-3 standard.

IDV solutions testing, which refers to ID document and biometric selfie checks typically used in customer onboarding and to meet KYC and AML compliance requirements, is also offered by BixeLab. Pope noted that testing these solutions thoroughly is important, because there are many entrants into the market, and they have not all built their solutions in ways “that are not necessarily best practice.” That testing generally includes mobile devices and platforms to cover the range of sensor inputs and other factors that can affect performance, as well as some of the above testing elements for biometric accuracy and PAD.

The IEDV testing service also analyzes the solution’s document verification effectiveness including OCR accuracy.

BixeLab also provides analysis of biometric data, whether in the form of raw datasets or matching data. Potential performance problems or vulnerabilities can be detected and identified in a report, so the bias or accuracy degradation they might cause avoided.

Biometric training services are available from BixeLab, and can satisfy training mandates such as those in Australia’s Trusted Digital Identity Framework, and consulting on governance for biometrics and identity system. The latter could include good management frameworks and roadmaps for consistent upgrades.

Finally, vendors can contract periodic reporting services similar to BixeLab’s operational review testing, and security assessments and reviews.

Dr. Ted Dunstone, the managing director of BixeLab, as well as founder of the Biometrics Institute and head of its Security and Integrity Expert Group, and Pope talked about BixeLab’s proprietary datasets in the question and answer period at the conclusion of the presentation.

Article Topics

biometric data  |  biometric liveness detection  |  biometric matching  |  biometric testing  |  biometrics  |  BixeLab  |  ISO standards  |  ISO/IEC 30107-3  |  NIST  |  presentation attack detection