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HSBC reports high trust levels in biometric tech as twins spoof its voice ID system
NEWS/COMMENT ...Continued from page 3 facial recognition technology reports US publication GCN. The letters were prompted by concerns for the privacy of citizens, but the members said they were ‘particularly alarmed by reports that facial recognition technology is less accurate at identifying people of colour’. The letters asked the mayors of Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, San Francisco and Washington DC for information ‘relating to the retention and use of photographs collected by or accessible to’ local law enforcement agencies, manufacturers, providers or federal agencies. In addition, the mayors were also asked to provide an inventory of their facial recognition technology systems, including information on costs, tech updates and whether federal grants were used to fund any parts of the systems.
multimodal
Nuance debuts multimodal biometric tech
N
uance has announced a suite of biometric security solutions, driven by artificial intelligence innovation. The Nuance Security Suite includes voice biometrics technology and facial and behavioural biometrics. The Nuance Security Suite applies deep neural networks as well as advanced algorithms to detect synthetic speech attacks. It reports a 45% to 55% improvement in synthetic speech detection, authenticating the customer when they say a predetermined phrase like ‘My voice is my password’ or during the course of normal conversation with an agent to determine if the customer is who they say they are. Facial biometrics use the camera on a smartphone to verify the person in real time while behavioural biometrics track how users interact with web and mobile applications, such as by scrolling, using their mouse, or tapping. Nuance Security Suite can also accept plug-ins for other emerging authentication technologies such as retinal scans.
banking
US adults want more biometrics options for mobile banking
A
survey of 1,002 US adults revealed that they want more biometrics options for mobile banking and that 12
Biometric Technology Today
they view biometrics as more secure than passwords. Eight out of 10 (79%) respondents said they want the opportunity to use more biometric authentication methods beyond the fingerprint (such as eye, face, fingerprint, and voice) to access mobile banking or payment apps. Additionally, 42% said they wouldn’t use a banking or payment app that doesn’t offer biometric authentication. EyeVerify has released ‘The Retail Banking Biometrics Confidence Report’ targeted at financial institutions. The report’s findings include: 86% of respondents agree that biometrics makes logging into apps easier than typing in a password; 21% check their mobile banking and payment apps more than once a day when biometrics are enabled; 23% log in once a day; and 30% log in a few times a week with biometrics. • The number of mobile payments authenticated by biometrics will rise to nearly 2bn this year, up from just over 600m in 2016, according to a Juniper Research study.
HSBC reports high trust levels in biometric tech as twins spoof its voice ID system
B
BC Click reporter Dan Simmons and his twin Joe have managed to spoof the HSBC bank’s voice recognition authentication. The twins set up an HSBC account and signed up to the bank’s voice ID authentication services. Concurrently, HSBC released a report that revealed 26% of respondents to a global survey trusted iris recognition to replace alphanumeric passwords to confirm their identity and prevent unauthorised access. Voice recognition and facial recognition were each trusted by 18% of respondents, while 46% trusted fingerprint recognition and 26% iris recognition. HSBC also found that rates of trust in biometrics tripled after a simple explanation.
COMMENT Nearly 30m revellers flocked to stadiums or pitched tents in muddy fields in the UK last year, attending some form of live music event, according to data from industry body Music, reports The Telegraph. 767,000 people travelled to the UK especially for a gig in 2015, spending £852 a head on their trip. In the light of recent terror attacks, particularly the attack in Manchester on children attending a concert, there is increasing focus on ensuring the safety and security of these events. Reuters has reported on a facial recognition system that is already in place, enhancing security at gigs and concerts The facial recognition system from Tapirs.co could help strengthen security at concerts and live events. Executive managing director Takaaki Tomisawa says: “The facial recognition system identifies a person by checking two facial photos, one you registered in advance when purchasing a ticket and the other to be filmed when you enter a concert.” The system has been used in Japan since 2014 and can cope with large-scale events catering for more than 100,000 people, recognising the ticket holder as they enter and allocating a seat and speeding up the ID check process by as much as 30% according to the company, Tomisawa adds: “By controlling
all information, who came in and went out when, we can ensure what kind of people are gathering at a concert or event venue and whether there is any suspicious person or not.” Tomisawa said the system could also help prevent concert tickets from being resold at inflated prices. Many of us would welcome the additional security this would bring. However, the perpetrator of the Manchester attack was not a ticket holder. To spread the public security net wider and enable facial recognition of unwitting members of the public going about their business is becoming increasingly feasible. So much so that the US Department of Homeland Security has stopped accepting proposals for lightweight border drones with on-board facial recognition biometrics for use by US Border Patrol agents more than two months early after it was swamped with submissions. It received more than three dozen proposals from potential suppliers. This comes as privacy bodies across the US challenge authorities on use of facial recognition, with the governor of Vermont, Phil Scott, ordering the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles to suspend use of its facial recognition programme. The outcome of the debate playing out in the US will be of interest to anyone seeking the right balance between privacy, safety and security. Tracey Caldwell
June 2017
multimodal
Nuance debuts multimodal biometric tech
N
uance has announced a suite of biometric security solutions, driven by artificial intelligence innovation. The Nuance Security Suite includes voice biometrics technology and facial and behavioural biometrics. The Nuance Security Suite applies deep neural networks as well as advanced algorithms to detect synthetic speech attacks. It reports a 45% to 55% improvement in synthetic speech detection, authenticating the customer when they say a predetermined phrase like ‘My voice is my password’ or during the course of normal conversation with an agent to determine if the customer is who they say they are. Facial biometrics use the camera on a smartphone to verify the person in real time while behavioural biometrics track how users interact with web and mobile applications, such as by scrolling, using their mouse, or tapping. Nuance Security Suite can also accept plug-ins for other emerging authentication technologies such as retinal scans.
banking
US adults want more biometrics options for mobile banking
A
survey of 1,002 US adults revealed that they want more biometrics options for mobile banking and that 12
Biometric Technology Today
they view biometrics as more secure than passwords. Eight out of 10 (79%) respondents said they want the opportunity to use more biometric authentication methods beyond the fingerprint (such as eye, face, fingerprint, and voice) to access mobile banking or payment apps. Additionally, 42% said they wouldn’t use a banking or payment app that doesn’t offer biometric authentication. EyeVerify has released ‘The Retail Banking Biometrics Confidence Report’ targeted at financial institutions. The report’s findings include: 86% of respondents agree that biometrics makes logging into apps easier than typing in a password; 21% check their mobile banking and payment apps more than once a day when biometrics are enabled; 23% log in once a day; and 30% log in a few times a week with biometrics. • The number of mobile payments authenticated by biometrics will rise to nearly 2bn this year, up from just over 600m in 2016, according to a Juniper Research study.
HSBC reports high trust levels in biometric tech as twins spoof its voice ID system
B
BC Click reporter Dan Simmons and his twin Joe have managed to spoof the HSBC bank’s voice recognition authentication. The twins set up an HSBC account and signed up to the bank’s voice ID authentication services. Concurrently, HSBC released a report that revealed 26% of respondents to a global survey trusted iris recognition to replace alphanumeric passwords to confirm their identity and prevent unauthorised access. Voice recognition and facial recognition were each trusted by 18% of respondents, while 46% trusted fingerprint recognition and 26% iris recognition. HSBC also found that rates of trust in biometrics tripled after a simple explanation.
COMMENT Nearly 30m revellers flocked to stadiums or pitched tents in muddy fields in the UK last year, attending some form of live music event, according to data from industry body Music, reports The Telegraph. 767,000 people travelled to the UK especially for a gig in 2015, spending £852 a head on their trip. In the light of recent terror attacks, particularly the attack in Manchester on children attending a concert, there is increasing focus on ensuring the safety and security of these events. Reuters has reported on a facial recognition system that is already in place, enhancing security at gigs and concerts The facial recognition system from Tapirs.co could help strengthen security at concerts and live events. Executive managing director Takaaki Tomisawa says: “The facial recognition system identifies a person by checking two facial photos, one you registered in advance when purchasing a ticket and the other to be filmed when you enter a concert.” The system has been used in Japan since 2014 and can cope with large-scale events catering for more than 100,000 people, recognising the ticket holder as they enter and allocating a seat and speeding up the ID check process by as much as 30% according to the company, Tomisawa adds: “By controlling
all information, who came in and went out when, we can ensure what kind of people are gathering at a concert or event venue and whether there is any suspicious person or not.” Tomisawa said the system could also help prevent concert tickets from being resold at inflated prices. Many of us would welcome the additional security this would bring. However, the perpetrator of the Manchester attack was not a ticket holder. To spread the public security net wider and enable facial recognition of unwitting members of the public going about their business is becoming increasingly feasible. So much so that the US Department of Homeland Security has stopped accepting proposals for lightweight border drones with on-board facial recognition biometrics for use by US Border Patrol agents more than two months early after it was swamped with submissions. It received more than three dozen proposals from potential suppliers. This comes as privacy bodies across the US challenge authorities on use of facial recognition, with the governor of Vermont, Phil Scott, ordering the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles to suspend use of its facial recognition programme. The outcome of the debate playing out in the US will be of interest to anyone seeking the right balance between privacy, safety and security. Tracey Caldwell
June 2017