To: jean who wrote (13766 ) 6/3/1999 5:43:00 PM From: David Read Replies (2) | Respond to
Jean, two very good finds! I can translate just a little bit . . . it's an optical/minutiae based system. That's compatible with the IDT technology. Photo analysis is best done by Brad and Hockeyfan. [Unfortunately, this system may obviate the need for tens of millions of biometric POS scanners at checkouts.] Because both the biometric fingerprint characteristics and the recognition algorithms are completely hidden in the card, any hackers are doomed to failure. Another important feature of the fingerprint ID card is the option of having the card deactivated by a trust center, thereby increasing security in the event that the card is lost. [This also means that if someone snatches your card and falsely enrolls as you, you can have the certificate authority (i.e., "trust center") deactivate the card and reissue it to you, the rightful owner. This safeguard, which should exist in all biometric smart card applications, opens the option of bypassing an inconvenient enrollment process, since an imposter will not do irreparable damage to your identity.] On the other hand, a user may possess an unlimited number of cards. Cards can be deactivated thanks to the inseparable combination of a unique key pair for asymmetric encryption [i.e., a PKI environment] and the unique biometric characteristics of the card owner. While the biometric characteristics are inalterable, the key pair, and hence the combination, can be changed. The only condition is that a valid key pair be used (obtainable from the trust center). Otherwise, even the card owner cannot use the card."
