Global ID 3D vein biometrics patent filing published in Hong Kong

Global ID is touting the privacy protection of authentication with its 3D vein biometric solution, and has also had a filing of its technology acknowledged by Hong Kong’s patent office.

The Intellectual Property Department of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region included acknowledgement of Global ID’s ‘method and device for biometric vascular recognition and/or identification’ (see page 249) in its latest update.

The 3D vein biometrics technology was patented by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 2019, giving it protection in 153 countries under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, and Global ID filed for a U.S. patent last year. The company says that with recognition in Europe, the U.S. and now Hong Kong, it has filed applications in each of its three target markets. The 3D vein recognition patent application is one of nine filed by the biometric startup.

Global ID’s 3D vein biometrics technology is used in its BioID solution.

Safeguarding privacy with ethical biometrics

Global ID has also written a position paper on the protection of personal identity and privacy with ethical biometric authentication.

Biometrics provide the assurance that people are who they claim to be which is necessary to underpin online interactions, Global ID points out. The technology also poses risks if a biometric used to secure a person’s identity can be used by someone else without their permission, however.

“For obvious reasons of privacy and identity protection, biometrics must use a physical feature that is not continuously dispersed and replicated, such as fingerprints, DNA, and face, which are fine for criminal investigations but are not ethical for everyday use,” the company writes. “Consumers and citizen must be able to exercise control on when their biometrics are captured.”

As a biometric modality that is hidden and requires the participation of the subject for data capture, finger vein authentication, which also allows for anti-spoofing checks, can satisfy the ethical requirements of biometric authentication, the company argues. This allows organizations to avoid annoying customers with “a jungle of pseudo-authentication questions and steps,” as well as the cost and inconvenience of resetting passwords.

Global ID notes that its patents cover cryptography and privacy, through the separation of biometric and personal data, as well as biometry. The management of personal data is handled by implementing organizations, integrators or OEMs, and is not visible to Global ID.

Article Topics

authentication  |  biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  ethics  |  Global ID  |  Hong Kong  |  patents  |  privacy  |  research and development  |  vein recognition