onClick Biometrics in touch

Another positive influence of biometrics

Amber Alert is getting into the high tech action with AmberView, a 3D image of the missing child to view for better accuracy. The computer can detail every feature of the child's face, and the viewer can rotate and resize and manipulate the image to see exactly what the child looks like.

It makes for a better way of recognizing a child while they are still alive, rather than wait to verify fingerprints after a death.

Amber alerts going high-tech

Facing ID theft.

Here's a little story about Colorado's use of facial recognition in obtaining driver's licenses. This is an interesting excerpt:

Of the nearly 735,000 applications processed between January and September 2004, motor vehicle officials found 528 fraudulent applications - about a quarter of them solely as a result of the facial-recognition computer program.

However even though the computer can narrow down matches to a handful versus a score of people in the database, a human touch is still needed to make that final confirmation. When the computer notices similarities, it's up to an investigator to decide if it's the same person.

Facial scanning targets ID theft.

Facial recognition to get a makeover.

Facial recognition is evolving everywhere. Scientists are taking the basic technology that exists today and running with it. Running to their labs that is.

These guys are collecting a database of expressions to create a program that can decipher emotion and moods. They actually need faces so, if you're in the St. Louis area, hook a scientist up!

And then there's a company making facial and 'object' recognition for cell phones and consumer electronics. They are also building an extensive database, this one filled with everything. Supposedly the technology will be able to identify any object you take a picture of. Comes in handy if you have short term memory loss I guess... among other things.

Moving FAST

Singapore has come up with a much more clever name for their frequent flyer project than the US's commonly called.... er... frequent flyer project. They have coined this procedure FAST - Fully Automated Seamless Travel. Just like the trials going on in the US, the Singapore Changi Airport will provide frequent travelers with a card that holds facial and fingerprint data so that they can avoid the full extent of security checkpoints.
Singapore Changi Airport testing biometrics-based system.

Also relevant to this theme is the effort by Asia-Pacific to be forward-moving with biometrics, now moving it beyond an 'emerging technology'. New Zealand leads the way, making headway with international standards on e-passports.
Biometrics in Asia-Pacific.

A standard for everything.

Standards are finally being set by Homeland Security to create a simple, congruent system of exchanging information among users with different equipment.
The standard is for facial recognition, and taking or displaying the images should be the same across the board.

Homeland completes biometric ID standards.

Passports could be troublesome?

A not so promising follow up on the biometric enabled passports for the UK.

One in 10 Hi-tech passports fails

US-VISIT - how it's shaping up.

Once all the chatter about US-VISIT settles back down to the norm, we'll see more articles like this one talking about how the new expansion to the project is working out.
One visitor who was one of the first from a visa-waiver country to be fingerprinted said it wasn't that long of a wait. It went quickly for her. We'll see how well it goes over for others in the weeks to come, I'm sure.
All over in just 3 minutes.

Visa-waiver countries in on the US-visit action

The US-VISIT program has been getting a whole new rash of coverage in the last few weeks since the inception. The first go around was only for select countries, but now the visa waiver countries have to be a part of it too, and so they are of course acting like it's a whole new deal. Which it is. To them. We already know what's going on.

But if you live in Andorra, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom, you might find this useful.

Q&A Fingerprinting foreigners.
As of September 30, most foreign travellers entering the US will be subject to the requirements of what is called the US-visit scheme.

It's all about 3D

Okay - here's the worthwhile article I was looking for.
As the industry gradually grows into itself, there is something to watch out for - 3D facial recognition.

"The biometrics industry is no longer in its infancy," Grant Evans, CEO of A4Vision, told TechNewsWorld. "Vast changes in the marketplace are the driving forces for biometrics." These forces are creating new markets for other forms of biometrics as well. New generations of fingerprint and iris recognition software will provide more reliable solutions than earlier versions, he said.

Biometrics: A security makeover.

Experience biometrics for yourself in UK

Some positive news about biometrics - it's not as intrusive as some think. That's what silicon.com has to say about the UK pilot going on now. They experienced it first hand. In fact, they suggest that you volunteer for the program if you would like to form your own opinion.
Leader: fear not the biometric ID.
Volunteer here.