Testing standards and biometrics certification needed to combat fragmentation, Fime argues

Fragmentation within the biometric authentication ecosystem has created challenges for developers with interoperability and adaptability, certification and uniform benchmarking, according to a blog post by Fime Authentication Product Manager Jean Fang and Authentication and Biometrics Laboratory Service Line Manager Joël Di Manno.

The fragmentation is caused by a lack of standardization, the post authors write, and holds back the biometrics industry in several ways. The market’s rapid rise is expected to continue, but could be restrained if these issues are not dealt with.

The global market for facial recognition is expected to reach $13.8 billion by 2028, according to a report from Emergen Research, growing at a 15.7 percent compound annual rate, and other modalities are on similar tracks, the post states.

Finding the right balance between security, which is expressed in a low false acceptance rate (FAR), and user experience, which relies on a low false rejection rate (FRR) increasing friction for legitimate users, is one area made more difficult by the market’s fragmentation.

Decisions by OEMs about what biometric technology to implement are also made challenging by fragmentation. OEMs are constantly evaluating available solutions, the post says. While OEMs would often be well-served by implementing multiple modalities to account for environmental considerations and high-security applications, and provide flexibility to deal with future changes to industry or regulations, the lack of standardization poses a hurdle.

For the dramatic gains in mobile biometrics to be replicated in other sectors, Fang and Di Manno write, companies need to be able to provide security assurances that are founded on standardized testing and certifications.

Fime has recently certified biometrics from Keyless to FIDO standards, and from Fingerprint Cards to Mastercard specifications.

Article Topics

authentication  |  biometrics  |  biometrics research  |  certification  |  Fime  |  interoperability  |  standards  |  testing