Biometric Authentication, the process of identifying individuals through their unique physical or behavioral traits, offers high security and convenience. This technology relies on biological features like fingerprints, facial recognition, voice, or behavioral patterns to verify identity, replacing traditional methods such as passwords or PINs. Biometrics has ancient roots, with fingerprints and palm prints used historically for identification. Modern technology has expanded the possibilities for Biometric systems, ensuring robust security. Biometric traits are highly individual and tough to replicate, enhancing protection against fraud and identity theft. While convenient, concerns include privacy issues and potential inaccuracies. Despite these concerns, Biometric Authentication is rapidly gaining popularity in various applications, from smartphone access to healthcare security. This article delves into the history, techniques, applications, and challenges of biometric authentication.

History of Biometric Authentication

Biometric authentication has a long history, dating back to ancient times. The Chinese used fingerprints as signatures in business transactions as early as the 14th century. The Babylonians used fingerprints to sign legal documents in 700 BC. However, it wasn't until the 19th century that the scientific study of fingerprints began.

In 1858, Sir William James Herschel, a British administrator in India, started using fingerprints as a means of identifying prisoners. He found that no two fingerprints were identical and began collecting prints as a means of identifying prisoners. Herschel's work was followed by that of Francis Galton, a British anthropologist and cousin of Charles Darwin, who developed the first classification system for fingerprints.

In the early 20th century, fingerprinting became a standard method of identification in law enforcement. In the United States, the FBI began using fingerprinting in the 1920s, and it remains a key component of criminal investigations to this day.

In the 1960s, the use of biometric authentication expanded beyond fingerprinting with the development of facial recognition technology. Woody Bledsoe, Helen Chan Wolf, and Charles Bisson developed a system that used computer algorithms to match facial features. However, the technology was still in its infancy and required high-quality images and controlled lighting conditions to function effectively. The 1970s saw the development of voice recognition technology, which used acoustic characteristics to identify individuals. The technology was used in limited applications such as telephone banking, but it was not widely adopted due to limitations in accuracy and ease of use.

The 1980s saw the introduction of hand geometry scanners, which measured the shape and size of a person's hand. The technology was primarily used in access control applications and was widely adopted in industries such as banking and healthcare. In the 1990s, iris recognition technology was developed. The technology uses the unique patterns in a person's iris to identify them. Iris recognition was more accurate than other biometric technologies, but it required expensive hardware and was not widely adopted.

The 2000s saw the development of facial recognition technology that could work with lower-quality images and in uncontrolled environments. This led to widespread adoption of the technology for security and surveillance applications. The development of smartphones with built-in fingerprint sensors in the mid-2010s led to a surge in the adoption of biometric authentication for mobile devices. Today, facial recognition and fingerprint authentication are commonly used for mobile payments and device unlocking.

In recent years, biometric authentication has expanded beyond physical characteristics to include behavioral characteristics such as typing patterns and mouse movements. These technologies, known as behavioral biometrics, are being used for fraud detection and authentication in online banking and e-commerce.

Process of Biometric Authentication

Biometric authentication is a security process that uses unique physical or behavioral characteristics of an individual to verify their identity. It involves the use of various technologies to capture and analyze these unique features and then match them against a pre-registered set of data.

The process of biometric authentication involves the following steps:

1. Enrollment: In this step, the individual's biometric data is collected and stored in a secure database. This can be done using various methods, such as fingerprint scanning, iris scanning, facial recognition, voice recognition, or even behavioral characteristics like typing patterns or gait.
2. Authentication: When the individual tries to access a system or facility that requires biometric authentication, the system prompts the user to provide their biometric data. The system then captures the data and compares it with the stored data in the database.
3. Matching: In this step, the system compares the captured biometric data with the stored data to determine if there is a match. If the system finds a match, the user is granted access. If not, the user is denied access.

Biometric authentication is one of the most secure forms of authentication, as it is difficult to replicate or fake the unique features of an individual. However, it is not foolproof and can still be subject to errors and vulnerabilities. Therefore, it is usually combined with other forms of authentication, such as passwords or security tokens, to increase the overall security of a system.

Types of Biometric Authentication

Biometric authentication is a security method that uses unique physical or behavioral characteristics of an individual to verify their identity. The most used biometric authentication techniques include:

• Fingerprint Recognition: This is one of the oldest and most widely used biometric authentication techniques. It involves scanning an individual's fingerprint and comparing it to a pre-existing database of fingerprints. Fingerprint recognition is highly accurate, quick and relatively inexpensive. Fingerprint sensors are now commonly integrated into mobile devices and laptops.
• Facial Recognition: Facial recognition involves scanning an individual's face using a camera and comparing it to a pre-existing database of facial images. This technique can be used in both controlled and uncontrolled environments and can be integrated into surveillance systems. However, facial recognition has been criticized for its potential to be biased, and inaccurate and its impact on privacy.
• Iris Recognition: Iris recognition involves scanning the unique pattern of an individual's iris using a camera and comparing it to a pre-existing database of iris images. This technique is highly accurate, non-intrusive and can work in low-light conditions. Iris recognition is commonly used in access control systems.
• Voice Recognition: Voice recognition involves analyzing the unique characteristics of an individual's voice, such as tone, pitch, and rhythm, to verify their identity. This technique is commonly used in telephone banking and customer service applications.
• Hand Geometry Recognition: Hand geometry recognition involves scanning an individual's hand and measuring the shape and size of their hand, fingers, and knuckles. This technique is commonly used in access control systems in industries such as healthcare and banking.
• Behavioral Biometrics: Behavioral biometrics involves analyzing an individual's unique behavioral characteristics, such as typing patterns, mouse movements, and the way they interact with a device, to verify their identity. This technique is commonly used for fraud detection in online banking and e-commerce.
• Vein Recognition: Vein recognition involves scanning the unique vein patterns in an individual's hand or face using near-infrared light and comparing them to a pre-existing database of vein patterns. This technique is highly accurate and non-intrusive and is commonly used in high-security applications.
• DNA Recognition: DNA recognition involves analyzing an individual's DNA to verify their identity. This technique is highly accurate but is typically only used in high-security applications due to the complexity and cost of the process.

Applications

Biometric authentication has been adopted in various industries and applications to enhance security, improve convenience, and streamline processes. The common applications of biometric authentication include:

• Access Control: Biometric authentication is commonly used in access control systems to restrict access to sensitive areas such as data centers, laboratories, and restricted areas within a facility. Access can be granted only to authorized personnel with biometric credentials such as fingerprints, iris patterns, or facial recognition.
• Time and Attendance Tracking: Biometric authentication can be used to record employee attendance and work hours, eliminating the need for manual timekeeping systems that are prone to errors and time theft. This can be done using biometric devices that scan employee fingerprints or facial recognition.
• Mobile Device Security: Biometric authentication is used to secure mobile devices such as smartphones, laptops, and tablets. This allows users to unlock their devices with their fingerprints or facial recognition, eliminating the need for passwords that are easily forgotten or stolen.
• Financial Transactions: Biometric authentication is being adopted in financial institutions to enhance security and prevent fraud. For instance, banks can use fingerprints, voice recognition, or facial recognition to authenticate customers for transactions such as online banking and mobile payments.
• Border Control: Biometric authentication is used in border control to enhance security and improve the speed of passenger processing. Biometric data such as fingerprints, facial recognition, and iris patterns can be collected and matched to a database of travelers' information to verify their identity.
• Healthcare: Biometric authentication is used in healthcare to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to patients' medical records and medication. Biometric authentication can be used to limit access to certain areas within a hospital or to track medication administration.
• Law Enforcement: Biometric authentication is used in law enforcement to identify suspects and to solve crimes. Law enforcement agencies use fingerprint and facial recognition technology to match crime scene evidence to a suspect.
• Voter registration: Biometric authentication is being adopted in some countries to prevent voter fraud by verifying the identity of voters during registration and voting. Biometric data such as fingerprints or facial recognition can be used to authenticate voters.

Patent Analysis

The patent data in this article shows information related to biometric authentication, including the top-rated assignees, and patent filing trends across the globe and in recent years.

It has been noticed that the bigger players in this field are Fujitsu, followed by NEC and Apple. Other top companies that contribute to this technology are Samsung, Hitachi, Sony and Canon. Fujitsu is heavily involved in biometric authentication systems. They have been developing biometric technology for many years, and their expertise in this area is well-respected. Fujitsu has developed a number of biometric authentication systems which include: PalmSecure, PalmEntry, Face Recognition and Voice Biometrics. Fujitsu has been at the forefront of developing biometric authentication systems, and their technology is widely used in a variety of industries, including finance, healthcare, and government. As a result, Fujitsu has a large portfolio of patent filings in the area of Biometric Authentication.

The graph shown below represents the number of applications related to the Biometric Authentication systems filed in the last ten years. It is noticed that the number of patent filings has increased significantly in 2020. This is due to the growing demand for security systems in the same year. With the advent of cyber security threats, the need for more efficient biometric authentication systems has increased, leading to an increase in research and development in this area. However, the dip in the number of patent filings in biometric authentication systems after 2020 may be due to several reasons. There could be several reasons why there might have been a decline in patent filings related to biometric authentication. One possible reason is that some biometric authentication technologies have become more standardized, which means that fewer companies are developing unique solutions that are eligible for patent protection. Another reason could be that the technology has matured and the rate of innovation has slowed down, leading to fewer new developments and patents being filed. The decline in patent filing related to biometric authentication may not necessarily indicate a decline in innovation or investment in the field, but rather a shift in focus towards other areas of biometrics or cybersecurity.

Conclusion

In conclusion, biometric authentication is a technology that relies on unique physical or behavioral characteristics to identify individuals. It offers a high level of security and convenience but also raises concerns about privacy and accuracy. As technology continues to evolve, it is likely that biometric authentication will become even more prevalent in our daily lives, and it will be important to continue to address these concerns to ensure that it is used in a responsible and ethical manner.

References

1. https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/definition/biometric-authentication

2. https://heimdalsecurity.com/blog/biometric-authentication/

3. https://clockit.io/2016/08/05/historical-timeline-biometric-authentication/

4. https://towardsdatascience.com/biometric-authentication-methods-61c96666883a

5. https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/65920

6. https://www.nap.edu/read/12720/chapter/2