Biometric Identity Verification

Biometrics is the science of recognizing people by physical characteristics. Traditional approaches for identity verification have been based on using passwords, access cards or PIN numbers that can be stolen or forgotten. By providing increased security and convenience, biometrics have begun to see widespread deployment in access control, e-commerce, homeland security and retail applications.

Since August 2004, I have been a senior R&D engineer with Bioscrypt Inc. Bioscrypt is a leading provider of identity verification technology. The Company's solutions combine the convenience of touch with the high security of fingerprint-based biometrics for simple and secure access to facilities, equipment and information. Among the many leading edge companies and partners using Bioscrypt technology are the U.S. Army, NASA, American Express, the New York Police Department, NATO, Continental Airlines, Intel and Honeywell. A brief list of major projects I have developed at Bioscrypt follows.

1. Biometric key binding:

This is an algorithm that binds a digital key with a fingerprint image. Joint sponsorship for the research performed on this algorithm from December 2003 to March 2005 was provided by Bioscrypt and the Government of Canada through its Industrial Research Partnership Program (IRAP). Details of this project are considered protected business information and are not available to the public.

2. Optimization of Bioscrypt Core algorithm:

Bioscrypt's verification engine, Bioscrypt Core, is a state-of-the-art algorithm for comparing fingerprint images. It has been independently validated as the most accurate finger scan verification technology, coming in No. 1 at Fingerprint Verification Competition (FVC) 2002 and 2004. I am in charge of optimizing this algorithm for maximum sensor inter-operability. This is a very challenging task from an algorithmic point of view as one must take into account platform requirements, security concerns, template size restrictions, search speed, and database size requirements.

3. Biometric data interchange standards:

The INternational Committee for Information Technology Standards (INCITS) is the primary US focus of standardization in the field of Information and Communications Technologies. INCITS established Technical Committee M1, Biometrics, in November 2001 to ensure a high priority, focused, and comprehensive approach in the United States for the rapid development and approval of national and international biometric standards.

As a member of the Technical Committee M1 and its task groups M1.3 (Biometric Data Interchange Formats) and M1.5 (Biometric Performance Testing and Reporting), I have been participating in the development of numerus standards for biometric data interchange formats, profiles, and performance testing and reporting. At the time of this writing, I am serving as the Editor of two standards:

• ANSI/INCITS Standard 377-2004 ``Information Technology - Finger Pattern Based Interchange Format''

• ANSI/INCITS Project 1749-D ``Conformance Testing Methodology - Finger Pattern Based Interchange Format''.

4. Invited talk at the University of Toronto:

The goal of this talk was to present an overview of state-of-the-art fingerprint-based identity verification technology. It begins by reviewing the basic pattern-based and minutiae-based approaches to finger print recognition. Then, we will introduce Bioscrypt Core, which is the award-winning pattern-based algorithm used in current Bioscrypt products. Biometric Key Binding (BKB) which is a method for encoding and retrieving a digital key using fingerprints will be discussed next. Finally, we will provide our forecast of future trends, potentials and challenges in the fingerprint industry.

 Presentation Slides [12 Mb]:  PowerPoint File