Page 34 - EngineerIT August 2022 Digital

MEASUREMENT - BIOMETRICS

Biometric authentication is crucial for

long-term sustainability and success

Even as we return to ‘normal’ working conditions, the adoption and growth of online services continues
to surge, and the need for online security has become fundamental for all businesses with a digital

footprint. The world in which password authentication could be considered a viable security policy is
over, says Gur Geva, co-founder and CEO of iiDENTIFii.

emote digital biometric authentication and verification are now firmly in the
mainstream thanks to the need for businesses to be continuously active online.
RFor this reason, technologies involving proven facial biometrics to onboard or
authenticate customers, employees, suppliers, or the like, have become critical for the
security of business operations, and for security and fraud prevention reasons.
Using biometrics to access services has largely been popularised through mobile
phones, and increasingly the need for secure, complicated passwords is being replaced
by biometrics. With the pervasiveness of mobile ever-growing, technology adoption is no
longer only for the digital elite.
As a result, organisations are now trending towards digital biometric authentication
instead of passwords for ease of access. And the type of biometric authentication is
evolving, too. In fact, biometric authentication is more than an enabler; it is critical
for the sustainability and longevity of any successful business. Not only are businesses
compelling their clients to onboard digitally using remote facial biometrics – as one of the
most accurate and reliable form of biometrics – but customers also feel more comfortable
using facial biometrics to transact digitally with organisations instead of uploading
personal details. The uptake of remote digital biometric authentication is no longer Gur Geva
inconvenient, or an obstacle, for customers. On the contrary, it gives them reassurance.
As the zero trust security model gains traction, customers demand that the companies Establishing a relationship of trust is
they are dealing with in the online digital world are real, trustworthy and secure. Today’s also not only for the customer but
customers want the necessary assurance that they can transact without the fear of being for the organisation itself too – and
defrauded or becoming a victim of identity theft. A study published in IEEE Transactions biometric authentication is a critical tool
on Technology and Society, reveals that most people are comfortable with biometrics to establish that trust. For a true and
given the right circumstances trusted engagement to be cemented,
According to Gartner, biometric methods promise better user experience (UX), trust organisations require three things of you:
and accountability benefits than other credential-based methods and are fast gaining • Something you are (biometric)
traction with end-users across various markets as a result. Device-native biometric • Something you know (for example a
methods are now standard in new phones, tablets and PCs and are readily integrated into password or ID number)
mobile apps, browser-based apps, and proprietary authenticator apps for smartphones. • Something you have (hardware
In addition, third-party biometric methods offer greater control over enrolment and device)
configuration, better omnichannel support, and integration with identity proofing.
Customers are no longer inconvenienced by having to biometrically onboard but Advanced biometric authentication is the
rather feel reassured that the respective company has the correct security in place to first point of entry into an organisation’s
protect their transaction and their identity. People transact on several hardware devices digital world and should be a priority
or operating systems, laptops, phones, Android and iOS, so where there are people and and non-negotiable within a security and
devices, there is a need for trust to be able to transact. risk strategy. As people have become
Biometric authentication is not only important for security but also from a risk and comfortable with taking selfies, the
governance point of view, especially as regulations attempt to keep pace with online familiarity of holding a phone up to their
digital growth. Governments around the globe are enacting laws around remote trade face has added to the exponential growth
and communications where personally identifiable information is protected, and of facial biometric authentication, which
companies need to prove they have taken reasonable steps to protect consumers and very soon, will become as normal and
their information from theft and fraud. mainstream as PIN codes are now. n

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