Face biometrics algorithms and products with better accuracy joining market
Novel biometrics advances and major government digital ID programs dominated the top headlines on Biometric Update this week. The most-read news takes in algorithms and 3D sensors for facial recognition, and digital ID for people in DRC, Ghana, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Nepal and Kenya. Idemia has won a continuation contract for biometric passports, Paravision has shown impressive accuracy again, and Metalenz has struck a product development partnership.
Top biometrics news of the week
A new national ID card storing citizens’ biometrics is being launched in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which plans to kick-start its enrollment process by using data from a voter registration campaign that is currently being conducted. In Ghana, some 800,000 ID cards remain uncollected, while the country is embarking on an exercise to register those not yet enrolled in the system.
Large data breaches have been suffered by government systems in Bangladesh and Indonesia. While passport data from nearly 35 million Indonesians was stolen, Tempo reports that officials have denied any biometric data was included in the hack. In Bangladesh, a leak of national ID card numbers made the country’s online birth registration system vulnerable to manipulation, according to reports.
Ethiopia’s government and national bank are planning to enroll those with bank accounts in its national digital ID during the 2023/2024 financial year, before making the ID mandatory for bank transactions. Then the government wants everyone else signed up by the end of 2025, which is says will benefit financial inclusion.
User authentication may or may not helped to prevent the fatal e-scooter accident involving an underage rider using someone else’s account in the UK, Biometrics Institute CEO Isabelle Moeller tells Biometric Update. Onfido provides the e-scooter rental company with biometric ID verification, but not authentication, while the rental company says it is reviewing its options.
Idemia will supply Nepal with 2.8 million biometric passport booklets, along with support services, as the country prepares for its next contract. The country was running low on 34-page booklets, and Idemia is providing the additional passports, which people can enroll for at 26 centers across the country, at a reduced price.
Kenya is preparing to select technology suppliers for the UPI digital ID scheme, which is supposed to go live by October. NADRA, a European firm, and an Indian bidder are rumored to be in the running for contract. There may be conflict within government over the decision.
NIST is showing off fake fingers newly developed for assessing contactless fingerprint biometric technology. The test fingers are intended to compare 2D contact and 3D contactless images, and are made with 3D-printed bones. The agency expects them to provide a consistent benchmark with a human-like form factor.
Facial recognition developers continue to push the state of the art forward, with the July 5 edition of the NIST FRVT 1:N. The agency found that algorithms submitted within the last three months by Megvii, Paravision, Kakao, Armatura, Verigram, Maxvision and Omnigarde make up nearly a third of the top 22 in overall biometric accuracy.
Metalenz and Dilusense are working together to build 3D facial recognition into smart locks and payment kiosks in a new partnership. The Orion structured-light sensor from Metalenz combines the functionality of several traditional lenses, CEO Rob Devlin tells Biometric Update.
The acquisition of ForgeRock by Thoma Bravo is getting another look by a U.S. Justice Department anti-trust unit. The private equity fund’s acquisition of Ping Identity last year brings two competitors under the same corporate umbrella, and could be challenged in court.
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