Technology

Biometric Technology: A Brief History

Biometrics is a product of today’s cutting-edge technology. Biometrics is a way to measure one’s physical characteristics to verify their identity. Such characteristics include physiological traits like fingerprint, eyes, and specific behavioral characteristics.

The automated identification of people based on their physiological traits and characteristics is referred to as biometric authentication and has been employed by various financial institutions and banks as part of their security solution. 

The most apparent benefit of biometric technology compared to traditional authentication methods such as passwords, personal ID cards, magnetic cards, or keys is linked to an individual’s unique characteristics and traits. Therefore, it is not easily compromised through theft and fraudulent acts.

For a long time, people were accustomed to using passwords to open their bank accounts or access confidential information. However, traditional passwords and pins are susceptible to criminal acts.

Today, hackers have sophisticated technologies and tools to commit crimes, but passwords are still their number one target. In large organizations, even one employee with a weak password can jeopardize the whole company as hackers can easily put the company’s entire system at risk for security breaches.

According to Verizon’s Data Breach Investigation’s Report in 2020, 81% of the total number of breaches leveraged stolen or weak passwords. 

The FIDO Alliance was founded to address this issue with a focused mission to reduce the world’s reliance on passwords. They are responsible for promoting the development and use of compliance with standards for authentication and device attestation.

Moreover, in today’s digital world, the use of ekyc portal has also increased. KYC is short for Know Your Customer, and the eKYC is the process of electronically verifying the identity of customers. Many finance companies have mandated KYC regulations before providing financial services to customers.

Read this infographic from LoginID to learn about the history of Biometric Technologyand Fraud Prevention

Biometric Technology: a brief history

Hrant Gruff
the authorHrant Gruff