How Online Biometric Authentication System Works
A biometric authentication system works mainly on three different processes, including user enrollment, storage of biometric samples and user authentication. While talking about offline biometric authentication, it sounds convenient to carry out all three processes. What about online biometric authentication to carry out variety of financial transactions on internet?
With advancement in the field of biometrics, the online biometric authentication systems have evolved, making it possible to implement the three above mentioned processes for online user authentication. The following discussion describes these systems and their working.
Key Components
There are mainly five key components to help in biometric eCommerce authentication and online transaction process:
- Enrollment device: Connected to the computer using USB port, an enrollment device consists of a biometric finger scanner to capture the biometric samples from the user.
- Storage system: It is responsible for online storage of the biometric data captured from various enrollees.
- Middleware: It acts like the communication medium among the enrollment device, storage system and verification system.
- Verification system: It is used to employ the process of verification, using the live data and the stored biometric data.
- Transaction processor: The component is responsible for hosting the transaction to get complete.
How Process Takes Place?
Online biometric systems work in the manner similar to that of offline biometric authentication system. First, the user provides biometric data (generally, the fingerprints) using enrollment device. Middleware helps the information to pass to the storage system using GPRS and other data transfer formats. Identification number per user, along with his or her biometric samples is stored in the enrollment database.
Whenever the user wishes to conduct an online transaction, he or she needs to enter the identification number, along with live fingerprint samples. The middleware passes the information to verification system, so that it can be compared with the stored information. The transaction is thereby approved or rejected, depending upon the match or miss of the data.
Involving online biometric authentication can bring down the number of online transaction frauds by providing better access control as compared to passwords and other traditional ways.
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written by Plurilock , December 06, 2010
Great overview ...
One interesting issue related to this technology is privacy. Not everyone wants to have their fingerprint information stored on a server no matter how much they trust the company. What are the companies creating these products doing to address this issue?
I also wanted to point out that there are products on the market that do not require a hardware device for enrollment. Our company, Plurilock, has created hardware-free biometric technology for both network and online authentication. Users are authenticated based on their mouse and keystroke movements. Other than providing the system with a certain amount of mouse and keystroke data to create a user profile, no other ongoing inputs are required from the end-user and the application runs transparently in the background. More information about this product, BioTracker, can be found at:
http://www.plurilock.com/products/biotracker
Looking forward to more analysis of online biometric authentication products and would love to see some examples of what other companies are creating.
