We are all familiar with the use of biometrics for the issuing of visas, and more recently, to unlock our phones with fingerprints and ‘facial recognition’ technology. Biometrics are also becoming a buzzword in the news for their use in mass surveillance.
As the technology associated with biometrics develops, so do the uses for biometrics. The use of biometrics has moved past applications in civil security, to widespread applications in business, or ‘enterprise security’, as well as personal security. Lately, it has become an essential component in smaller scale, mainstream business applications, in physical security systems and digital security.
What are Biometrics?
Biometrics are biological (e.g. DNA), physiological (e.g. fingerprints, irises, facial contours) and behavioural identifiers (e.g. voice patterns, walk, typing speed etc. These identifiers are unique to each person. There are so many biometric identifiers now, that and individual’s set of unique biometrics is referred to as their ‘biometric identity’.
This applies even in the case of Identical twins. They can have identical biological biometrics, but they won’t have identical physiological or behavioural biometrics.
Enterprise Biometrics are used in:
- Physical (building and street) surveillance systems
- Cyber security systems and applications
Commonly used biometric applications for security:
- Retina and fingerprint scans
- Facial recognition
The hardware required for using biometrics includes scanners, CCTV and sensors, and the software involves data analysis programmes.
Biometric technology is a rapidly advancing field and the biometric applications in the latest cyber and physical business security systems offer the highest-level of access control and surveillance security for busines owners.
