CSC662

COMPUTER SECURITY

03c – BIOMETRICS AND

AUTHENTICATION

These slides are prepared from Shivani

Kirubanandan‘s lecture slide Version 2.0

DEFINITION

“A biometric is a physiological or
behavioural characteristic of a human being
that can distinguish one person from
another and that theoretically can be used
for identification or verification of identity.”

1
 WHY BIOMETRICS?

Identity thefts
Something you know can be stolen
Predicted or hacked
Reliability on manual verification

CATEGORIES

Biometric applications available today are

categorized into 2 sectors
Psychological: Iris, Fingerprints, Hand, Retinal
and Face recognition
Behavioural: Voice, Typing pattern, Signature

2
BIOMETRIC AUTHENTICATION
PROCESS
Identification Stage
Acquisition
Creation of Master characteristics
Storage of Master characteristics
Authentication Stage
Acquisition(s)
Comparison
Decision

FINGERPRINT RECOGNITION

Process
Divides print into loops, whorls and arch
Calculates minutiae points (ridge endings)
Comparisons
Authentication
Techniques
Optical
Capacitive
Thermal
Ultrasonic

3
FINGERPRINT RECOGNITION:
DISADVANTAGES
Racial issues
Dirt , grime and wounds
Placement of finger
Too big a database to process
Can be spoofed – liveness important!

HAND GEOMETRY
Geometry of users
hands
More reliable than
fingerprinting
Balance in
performance and
usability
Disadvantage
Very large scanners

4
 RETINAL SCANNING

Process
Scans retina into database
User looks straight into retinal
reader
Scan using low intensity light
Very efficient – cant be
spoofed!
Disadvantages
User has to look “directly”
FTE ratio high in this biometric
Acceptability concerns
Light exposure
Hygiene

IRIS SCANNER

Scans unique pattern of iris

Iris is coloured and visible from far
No touch required
Overcomes retinal scanner issues
Contact lenses an issue?

5
 FACE RECOGNITION

Process
User faces camera
Neutral expression
required
Apt lighting and
position
Algorithms for
processing
Decision

FACE RECOGNITION: ISSUES

Identification across expression

False Rejection Rate (FRR) or False
Acceptance Rate (FAR) fluctuate
Easily spoofed
Tougher usability
High Environmental impact

6
 KEY POINTS
Identity management and directory tools provide
mechanisms for maintaining and searching for object
identities.
Passwords and shared secrets are the most common
albeit not suf ciently secure tool for user
authentication.
Alternative user authentication mechanisms are
smart cards, biometric methods and two-factor
authentication.
Single sign-on methods such as Kerberos provide
means for automating authentication in large
distributed environments.

Thank You