The cost of fraud is on the rise, and so are the stakes. The National Crime Agency (NCA) estimates fraud losses to the UK at around £190 billion every year. Each year new fraud trends arise as fraudsters adopt new techniques to defraud people across all industries.
As the cost of fraud continues to soar, businesses are looking for new ways to protect their data by adopting effective fraud prevention techniques. One promising solution is biometric authentication when authenticating real users.
In this article, we’ll explore biometric authentication in depth. We’ll cover what it is, how it works, and the many business types that can benefit from this technology.
What is Biometric Authentication?
Biometric authentication is a type of identity authentication that uses biological traits to confirm someone’s identity. It is a method used for Passwordless Authentication. It is often used as an alternative to traditional methods like passwords or PIN numbers. That’s because biometric data is unique to everyone, making it much harder for fraudsters to counterfeit.
The biometric technology authentication has come a long way since itsintroduction in the 1970s. Today, biometric authentication can be used to authenticate a person’s identity in real time and with a high degree of accuracy. As a result, biometric authentication is becoming an increasingly popular way to protect data and prevent fraud.
Its advantages make it a technology worth considering for any business that collects and stores sensitive customer data. As more businesses recognise the need for stronger security, biometric authentication is likely to become even more common.
How Does Biometric Authentication Work?
For biometric authentication to take place, an identity verification process must have been completed previously.
There are four main steps in the biometric authentication process. Let’s take a closer look at each:
- Enrolment
In this step, biometric data is collected from an individual and stored in a database. This data is initially collected through the identity verification process using a variety of devices, including scanners, cameras, and microphones. For instance, fingerprints can be collected using a finger scanning device, and facial biometrics are captured with the camera of a smartphone.
- 2. Processing and Analysis
Once the biometric data has been collected, it must be processed and analysed. This step is important for ensuring that the biometric data is of high quality and authentic and can be used to accurately authenticate someone’s identity with the identity data that was previously verified, making sure that the biometric data matches the one previously verified.
- 3. Comparison
In this step, the biometric data is compared to a reference template. This template can be stored in the same database as the biometric data or in a separate location. The reference template is used to confirm that the biometric data belongs to the individual being authenticated.
- 4. Decision
Once the biometric data has been compared to the reference template, a decision is made. This decision is based on the similarity between the biometric data and the reference template. If the biometric data matches the reference template, then the individual’s identity is confirmed. If not, then authentication fails.
The importance of Biometric Authentication Technology
Adopting Biometric Authentication Technology is a key part of Identity Verification. Once a user’s identity is verified with their specific biometrical characteristics, every time they access their account and information, they should be authenticated using the same biometrical characteristics. This would help prevent fraud such as identity theft and identity fraud, and other known fraud scenarios such as account takeover fraud.
When Biometric Authentication is used with other techniques such as liveness detection, it becomes impossible to spoof the biometrics of the authentic users. With liveness detection, fraudulent methods used to spoof someone’s identity such as 3D masks or deepfakes would not bypass the biometric checks if the user isn’t using their live face or other live biometrics to authenticate themselves.
What are the types of Biometric Authentication?
There are several different types of biometric authentication. The most common types are listed below.
Facial Recognition
Face recognition technology uses an individual’s unique facial features to confirm their identity. This type of biometric authentication is often used in security systems, as it can be used to quickly and accurately authenticate someone’s identity in real time.
In recent times facial recognition technology has become much more accurate, thanks to advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence to prevent fraud such as identity fraud.
Iris Recognition
Iris recognition is a type of biometric authentication that uses an individual’s unique iris pattern to confirm their identity. This type is very accurate and is often used in high-security biometric systems.
One advantage of iris recognition is that it can be used from a distance. This means that iris recognition can be used for security purposes without the need for physical contact.
Fingerprint Recognition
Fingerprint recognition is a type of biometric authentication that uses an individual’s unique fingerprint to confirm their identity. This type of biometric authentication is often used in security systems as it is quick and accurate.
One advantage of fingerprint recognition is that it can be used in a variety of situations. For instance, fingerprint recognition can be used to unlock a smartphone or to log into a computer.
Voice Recognition
Voice recognition is a type of biometric authentication that uses an individual’s unique voice to confirm their identity. This type of biometric authentication is often used in security recognition systems, thanks to its quickness and accuracy. Voice recognition is difficult to spoof.
Palm or Finger Vein Patterns
Another increasingly popular biometric identification method is scanning an individual’s palm or finger veins. This method works by shining near-infrared light on the skin, which makes the veins underneath visible. The vein pattern is then captured by a camera and used to confirm the individual’s identity.
Like other biometric authentication methods, palm vein recognition is quick and accurate.
In which business types can Biometric Authentication be used?
Biometric authentication can be used in just about any type of business. Here are a few examples:
- Gaming
Given how big the gaming industry is, it’s no surprise that it’s a major target for hackers. Biometric authentication can help gaming companies protect their customers’ data and prevent fraud. It can also be used to verify the identity of gamers and to prevent cheating.
For instance, biometric authentication can be used to unlock game content or to make in-game purchases. Thus, if you’re a gaming company, biometric authentication is definitely something to consider.
- Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum have become increasingly popular in recent years. As the value of these currencies has gone up, so has the risk of crypto fraud. In 2021 alone, scammers made away with $14 billion in cryptocurrency. And the threat is only getting bigger.
That’s where biometric authentication comes in. By using biometric authentication, cryptocurrency companies can authenticate the identity of their users and prevent fraud. For instance, it be used to authenticate the identity of users when they make a transaction, such as withdrawing their crypto funds.
- Insurance
The insurance industry is another business that can benefit from biometric authentication. Insurance companies can use biometric authentication to verify the identity of customers and prevent fraud. For instance, when a client calls to make a claim, biometric authentication can be used to verify their identity. This would help to prevent fraudsters from making false claims.
- Finance
An estimated 71% of all cases of breaches are motivated by financial gain. It thus follows that financial institutions are among the businesses that are most at risk of being targeted by cybercriminals.
Biometric authentication can help financial institutions protect themselves and their customers. For instance, biometric authentication can be used to authenticate the identity of customers when they make a transaction. This would help to prevent fraudsters from making unauthorised transactions.
- Healthcare
Any healthcare organisation that deals with sensitive patient data is at risk of being hacked. Therefore, biometric authentication is becoming increasingly popular in the healthcare industry. Biometric authentication can help healthcare organisations verify the identity of their employees and prevent unauthorised access to patient data.
Advantages of Biometric Authentication
The use of traditional authentication methods like passwords and PINs is still very common. However, biometric authentication is quickly becoming the preferred method of authentication for many people and businesses. This is because biometric authentication has several advantages over traditional methods. Here are some of them:
- Accuracy
Perhaps the main advantage of biometric authentication is that it is more accurate than traditional methods. This is because biometric authentication uses physical or behavioural characteristics that are unique to everyone. This makes it much harder for someone to impersonate another person.
- Convenience
Any superior authentication method must be convenient, or else people will simply not use it. Biometric authentication is more convenient than traditional methods because it doesn’t require you to remember a password or carry a physical token. All you need is your biometric data.
- Speed
Another advantage of biometric authentication is that it is much faster than traditional methods. This is because biometric information can be captured and processed quickly. Traditional methods like passwords and PINs, on the other hand, often require you to input a large amount of data, which can take time.
- Cost-effectiveness
Biometric authentication is more cost-effective than traditional methods in the long run. This is because biometric data can be stored electronically and reused again and again. Traditional methods like passwords and PINs, on the other hand, often must be changed frequently, which can be costly.
Our Biometric Authentication Solution – Udentify
Now that you know more about biometric authentication and its advantages, you might be wondering how you can implement it in your business. Luckily, there’s no need to start from scratch. Udentify offers a biometric authentication solution that is accurate, convenient, fast, and cost-effective.
With Udentify, you get to authenticate the real identity of people in just seconds. Whether it’s your customer, employee, user, business partner, student, or patient, you can be sure that you’re dealing with the right person.
What’s more, Udentify is easy to use and integrates seamlessly with your existing systems. There’s no need to make any major changes to your infrastructure. You can start using Udentify right away. With Udentify’s six layers of security, preventing fraud has never been this easy.
Discover the Power of Biometric Authentication Today!
As fraud increases, businesses are increasingly turning to biometric authentication to protect themselves. This is because biometric authentication is more accurate, convenient, and cost-effective than traditional methods. If you’re looking for a better way to authenticate the identity of your employees or customers, biometric authentication is worth considering.
Ready to get started? Check out Udentify today and discover a new era of identity verification, authentication, and fraud prevention.
