Biometrics outlook mostly sunny with periods of deepfakes

Biometrics forecasts are among the most-read stories of the week on Biometric Update. Goode Intelligence sees revenues for the biometrics behind payments to reach $11.3 billion by 2030, while Acuity sees $315 billion in total identity transactions made with biometrics by 2028. Executives from Pindrop, iProov, Reality Defender and other industry players discuss what’s ahead in deepfakes, while a pair of acquisitions by Assa Abloy and $23 million in funding for ThreatMark illustrate the appetite for investment in both the physical and digital security sectors.

Most read biometrics news of the week

The “Pay by me” revolution is here, according to the latest biometric payments market analysis from Goode Intelligence. The report forecasts $11.3 billion in revenue for biometrics suppliers from payments by 2030, as the technology is turned to reducing online shopping cart abandonment, meeting regulatory requirements like those for age verification, and hybrid scenarios involving another application like ticketing or permissions.

The Prism Project’s Flagship Report from Acuity Market Intelligence sounds a similarly upbeat note, predicting $315 billion worth of transactions carried out with biometrics by 2028. Acuity Principal Maxine Most tells Biometric Update in an interview that as “a living research document” intended to help participants within a complex market understand how the pieces fit together.

Deepfakes featured as prominently in industry forecasts for 2025 as they did in the news in 2024. Biometric Update collected predictions for deepfakes from Pindrop about training data, iProov on injection attack detection and Tools for Humanity about regulation. Reality Defender describes the layered defense necessary and Palo Alto Networks discusses deepfakes as a bridge to quantum-resistant defenses.

A public notice from InfoCert, a leading provider of Italy’s SPID digital identities, admits it has suffered a data breach resulting in the sale of 5.5 million records of biographic personal information on the dark web. InfoCert manages 1.8 million active SPID identities as one of a dozen accredited service providers.

Surveillance cameras made by Motorola and deployed as automatic license plate readers have been transmitting unsecured live streams over the internet, 404 Media reports. A security researcher built a proof-of-concept for a tool that tracks people’s movements in real-time through the feeds. The cameras, widely used in the U.S., are supposed to run on a secure private network, but have been misconfigured.

Press in Turkey are reporting the country will help Syria issue new identity cards and biometric passports, after backing the winning side in a civil war that swept its current government to power. Turkish officials have suggested Syria’s new ID documents will be produced similarly to Turkey’s, in line with international standards.

The U.S. Department of Defense’s updated list of Chinese companies considered military contractors adds Dahua, Hikvision and Cloudwalk to the included biometrics providers. Yitu has returned to the list, and despite SenseTime’s recent pivot away from facial recognition, it is there too. Aisino, Tencent and Huawei are also among those flagged, but Megvii has been removed from the list.

The move follows the submission by DOD of a lengthy report to Congress on China’s strategic integration of AI and biometrics with military, security and foreign influence operations. The report warns that not only is facial recognition used domestically by China as a tool of repression and then exported to other countries, but that its customers’ reliance on Chinese technology threatens their technological sovereignty.

Similar warnings about democratic rights, national security and sovereignty are coming from media and NGOs in response to a deal with India to support Sri Lanka’s digital ID program. An editorial in a major local paper calls for the establishment of safeguards and clarity on certain aspects of the MoU between the countries.

Assa Abloy has acquired Colorado-based 3millID and Wales-headquartered Third Millenium Systems and is merging them with HID’s physical access control business. Terms were not disclosed. The deals follow four more acquisitions by Assa Abloy in December, of access control companies based in the U.S. and Europe.

ThreatMark has announced a $23 million funding round, just as the latest fraud figures paint a grim picture of the threat landscape. Feedzai and the Global Anti-Scam Alliance say fraudsters stole a trillion dollars over the past year, while regulators in the UK and US have finally finished tallying up the totals for 2023.

TSA wants to scan travelers for concealed objects without making them stop walking, and is working with long-time supplier Leidos and DHS S&T. The former’s contract has been extended, and the latter is running the Screening at Speed Program to investigate the use of High Definition-Advanced Imaging Technology (HD-AIT).

Inverid and iProov are behind the pre-registration app launched by Frontex to meet the requirements of Europe’s incoming Entry/Exit System (EES). The document scanning function of the new Travel to Europe app is supplied by Inverid’s Read ID, while the liveness check is provided by iProov.

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Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital ID  |  digital identity  |  facial recognition  |  week in review