Broad biometrics adoption in new and established markets spurs investor action

The growth of biometrics in emerging industries like age verification and established ones like payments is dovetailing with the adoption and refinement of digital identity and expansions in police use to create a market tailwind. The week’s top stories on Biometric Update provide examples of each, along with the challenges that accompany these new kinds of interactions, from messaging to AI-powered fraud.

Market moves this week reflect optimism and growth in biometrics for retail payments, wearables and law enforcement.

NEC has taken a stake in PopID, which has already deployed face biometrics to more than 1,000 restaurants and retailers, consistent with its broader support for the payment method. Meanwhile Wink’s biometric platform will run on payment terminals from PAX, and Malaysian firm OpenSys is trialling Tencent palm biometrics at points-of-sale.

Biometric wearables maker Oura wants to expand into digital identity and payment authentication, having made a billion dollars in revenue from its smart rings’ fitness and sleep-tracking capabilities.

ROC has been quietly preparing for a $23 million IPO, Having established a solid position in the American law enforcement market, the company has expanded its portfolio to include technologies like age estimation and injection attack detection and its geographic reach globally.

UK government plans to expand police use of facial recognition were revealed with a simultaneous consultation launch and release of information. The new data includes confirmation that Cognitec and Idemia are supplying biometric algorithms, and a demographic differentials report from the NPL that has sparked concern.

Everybody hold on to your memes

Age assurance requirements for social media go live in Australia next week, and developments will be closely watched by businesses, policy-makers, parents and free-speech advocates around the world. An EU committee report calls out the nefarious influence and exploitative nature of “kidfluencers” as yet another possible argument in favor of age restrictions. In the U.S., legislation at the federal level targeting social media companies has been introduced, but the future of a version without a legal duty of care is doubtful, and a version with it failed to reach a vote in the House.

Security Industry Association Senior Director of Government Relations Jake Parker joins the Biometric Update Podcast to explore the potential for facial age estimation to help Roblox resuscitate its reputation on child safety.

Government digital transformation

Governments around the world continue to grapple with digital transformation of identity systems, service delivery systems or both.

A “Digital ID Safety Pack” has been introduced by the Turing Institute’s Cyber Threat Observatory for National Identity Systems, and will be introduced in an online workshop on December 10. The Observatory’s quarterly report shows a spike in biometric spoof attacks and synthetic identities that could undermine the integrity of DPI.

The threat of AI is creating its own growth industry. Behavioral Signals CEO Rana Gujral explained his company’s innovative approach to voice fraud and deepfake detection in an interview with Biometric Update.

Brunei is working toward an official launch of a national digital ID, launching in app stores last week. BruneiID can be used for passwordless access to public services and to perform identity verification.

Denmark is upgrading its digital ID system, replacing MitID with the AltID app, which will serve as its EUDI Wallet. The version promises more user control and ZKPs, and can be used for a wide range of applications.

Romania is catching up on eIDAS compliance, but growth in the private sector has paved the way for digital identity adoption and use in the public sector, Evrotrust CEO Konstantin Bezuhanov tells the country’s Business Review.

A meeting between the UK government and industry representatives, including TechUK, the ADVP and AVPA, yielded some relief for private sector digital identity and wallet providers, if little certainty. The government says it has decided what it wants digital ID to do, but the public sector’s role will be determined after the consultation.

The U.S. Social Security Administration is carrying out an ambitious digital modernization plan at the same time as it reduces staffing at the field offices. Those field offices are supposed to provide the in-person alternative that prevents digital exclusion, particularly for vulnerable groups like seniors and Americans with disabilities.

The TSA has introduced Confirm.ID, an identity verification alternative for people who don’t have REAL ID-compliant IDs or passports. The $45 alternative replaces manual verification with automated checks based on biometric or biographic information.

Please let us know if you spot any thought leadership pieces, panels or podcasts we should share with the people in biometrics and the digital identity community in the comments below or through social media.

Article Topics

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