A Biometric Security firm in America has announced the release of a biometric-activated keyring solution that gives doctors access to a person’s medical records once authorised by the patient.
The electronic medical records storage product allows for the capture and storage of a person’s complete medical history and files giving medical care givers instant access to a patient’s vital medical history.
If a patient is unconscious then the device has an emergency on/off button that will display the person’s medical condition, medication the patient is taking and quantities. Also included is the patient’s blood type, allergies, if any, and any other important medical information that would assist any Doctor in providing immediate life saving treatment.
After the patient has been stabilised then he or she is able to swipe their fingerprint on the medical keyring fingerprint sensor and hand it over to the attending Doctor. The Doctor then simply takes the portable electronic medical records device to any computer and plugs it into the computer USB port. This will then display the patient’s complete medical history. The biometric fingerprint access solution is making big news in the US.
The company says the advantage of this portable fingerprint device is that it is designed to be plug and play on a PC. It does not need special software to be installed on the hospital’s computer nor does it need special training as the user interface is intuitive allowing for easy to follow menus that will provide rapid access to the patient’s complete medical files.
Ibiza beach Hotel guests take advantage of new biometric fingerprint payment system! Innovative biometrics enabling consumers to pay digitally without the use of a card have recently included 24 gym access through fingerprint readers and receipts being sent directly to smartphones. However, a famous Ibiza Beach Hotel has rolled out what is the first instance of biometric payments we’ve seen in the hospitality industry, utilising a biometric fingerprint reader system.The hotel is currently regarded a technical pioneer having already experimented with RFID-equipped bracelets allowing guests to keep their Facebook friends updated about their holiday in real time. Now it has teamed up with a biometric fingerprint reader firm to provide the ultimate payment system for guests. The fingerprint reader payment system allows travellers to register their print upon arrival at the hotel. Guests give their card details along with the biometric data of their right index and middle fingers. All of the facilities at the destination have been equipped with fingerprint recognition devices, meaning that customers do not have to present cards or enter pin numbers — rather, they press their fingers against the reader for a few seconds to complete payment. Security is increased due to the unique nature of fingerprints and the reduced need to carry cards around while on holiday.
The hotel recognises that it’s guests may be unfamiliar and wary of biometrics and so each registration also comes with an account where users can track transactions on-line and the hotel rewards guests taking up the scheme with various discounts, prizes and promotions.
In america news on the effectiveness of fingerprint scanners is spreading like wildfire. Fingerprint reading is one of the most important ways officers identify criminals, and the faster, the better. Now, new technology is helping officers get the job done more efficiently than ever before.
King County deputies are now using a portable device about the size of a cell phone to get almost instant results.
The portable fingerprint scanner’s require only two prints: each index finger, pressed one at a time on the reader. Bluetooth sends it to the officer’s in-car computer and then results from the county’s database come back in 30 seconds or less.
“Gives the officer a chance to make a quick decision,” said Carol Gillespie, King County’s AFIS Program Manager. “Whether they’re going to detain the subject or let them go.”
This new technology also saves precious time. The deputy no longer has to haul suspects back to the office or the jail to check those prints.
“That allows the officer to stay on the street instead of taking the officer off the street,” Gillespie said.
The county emphasises the safety of the data capture by stating “no, they don’t keep the prints, and will not use the scanners for typical traffic stops. Only when there’s probable cause.”
The portable fingerprint scanners cost about $1,700 a piece. The King County Sheriff’s Office now have four with a half dozen more on the way.
Due to our tendency to follow America on also every trend we at ievo will be welcoming when this system is discussed in the UK.
Helston College is introducing a new biometric fingerprint system for children as a cashless method of paying for lunch.
The fingerprint scanner system will be completed and running on the 14th November. One difference of this system is that it will require a parent to give consent to use their child’s biometric data.
The school are reassuring parents in every way that the system is of their best interests too. The Headteacher Pat McGovern has written a letter to parents assuring that all information of the children will remain within the school.
“The biometric information taken is an algorithm and not the actual finger print,” he said, in order to prevent parents from fearing that their children were being “fingerprinted.” It is unfortunate that biometrics has received an unfair portrayal in this light as the system is much more secure than other methods of identification. This is Helston’s reasoning for providing such extensive reassurance for parents of the system.
Parents are also able to opt-out of the system and children will be provided with another identification method such as a four digit PIN code. The school do not want to force this method upon parents until parents are comfortable.
Mr McGovern said: “The preference of the college is to use biometrics as this is more secure and faster than other methods of identification.”
Biometric Fingerprint Readers are an increasing security feature within UK School and this growth is expected to continue.
New software consisting of a Voice Biometrics Authentication Module has been announced to aid mobile banking. This new software solution runs unobtrusively on the mobile device of a financial institution’s account user and dynamically identifies the user based on unique voice characteristics granting access control. This new biometric software looks towards eliminating mobile banking hacking through this biometric security software.
Financial institutions conventionally utilise security measures based on passwords, PINs and second-form authentication processes such as personal security questions to confirm the mobile customers’ identity. The obvious problem with the current methods is that the device cannot actually determine who is using the device. Other problems include the time commitment to complete this lengthy security process over a mobile device, alongside this the security system does not protect against personal attacks. These problems have created the drive to move mobile banking into the biometric technology industry.
The voice fingerprinting delivered with this new biometric solution can dynamically identify whether mobile users actually are who they say they are, instead of proxies—all without adding complexity to the mobile user’s experience. Consequently, the Voice Biometrics Authentication Module provides a comprehensive, easy and quick authenticating and audit trail without frustrating a financial institution’s customers.
At ievo we think implementing biometrics into mobile banking would be great. Biometrics moving into another key sector to improve security!
Japanese technology giant Sony filed for a patent in May earlier this year, where it was discovered that the company intends to know just who their products’ users are through gaming entry systems. The brand is working on new user identification and tracking technology to store biometric data in it’s yet to be released Playstation 4 console.
It’s unclear exactly how the technology would work, but the patent mentions various sensors like “fingerprint readers, hand sensors, face recognition systems, voice pattern analyzers, and DNA analyzers”.
The technology being proposed addresses issues such as determining whether the person logged in to an account is actually the real account holder, piracy issues, security related factors, as well as pushing targeted advertising. Sony’s patent has been titled, “Process and Apparatus for Automatically Identifying User of Consumer Electronics,” where it describes the incorporation of fingerprint sensors which would be able to let it read some biometric data of its users on different devices including smartphones, keyboards and gaming controllers. This particular patent’s abstract reads, “A user of a device may be uniquely identified using a metric that is contingent upon the user using the device for its intended purpose without the user having to perform a separate step, function or operation for the express purpose of identifying the user.” Games that react differently to individual gamers does sound like a plausible and good “excuse” to implement this in future game consoles. Images in the patent application indicate that instead of just using the typical fingerprinting technology that won’t be able to determine the user after logging in, by using a set of appropriate biometric sensors such as fingerprint sensors, hand sensors, facial recognition system, iris and retinal scanners, voice patterns, and DNA analyzers, it would be able to determine the user even after logging into the account.
At ievo we think this could bring gaming up to a completely new level of interactivity and customisation. Although at present, it appears to be more of a concept on paper and =something that is still in the early stages of development.
Gatwick Airport won the “Best Security and Immigration” Experience award for the significant upgrades that have been made to its security and immigration processes.
The improvements have been made as part of the airport’s £1.2 billion capital investment program into better security.
The award recognized the airport’s outstanding efforts to improve the passenger experience. One of the airport’s passenger commitments is wait reductions and the airport has succeeded in cutting waiting times, which is highlighted by the fact that the average waiting time at security now stands at just slightly one and a half minutes.
To simplify access to the security search zone, facial recognition technology has been implemented, while dedicated special assistance and family lanes have been introduced. The centralized security area in the South Terminal can now handle as many as 5,000 passengers per hour. In both the North and South Terminals, immigration e-Gates have been installed to expedite and automate border clearance for e-Passport holders.
The award gave particular mention to the innovative passenger identification solutions integrated within the new £45m South Terminal Search Area. In operation since June 2011, the MFlow Track and MFlow Journey platforms, were selected by Gatwick to help revolutionize the passenger experience and enhance security.
In a world first deployment of ‘iris at a distance’ biometric technology and incorporating 30 iris recognition units integrated into advanced eGate lanes, MFlow Track has significantly helped improve passenger flow and heighten security within the South Terminal. This was achieved by associating passengers’ unique iris patterns to their boarding passes to prevent them from swapping with others in an attempt to board flights they are not authorised to.
Simultaneously the MFlow Journey platform deployed at Gatwick incorporates passive facial recognition technology to track and manage people flow through the Airport. Another world first deployment, this has provided Gatwick with the ability to view and respond to real-time passenger journey and queue measurement information helping to manage and reduce passenger queues while providing a truly future proofed capability.
One of the rumors leading into the Apple iPhone 5 event was that the new smartphone would incorporate fingerprint scanning technology. As of yet this has not been included within the new phone. Is this a mistake missed by Apple?
Smartphones and tablets store gigabytes of data. They have banking apps, and apps that access credit card or investment accounts. They connect to email, and social networks. If a mobile device falls into the wrong hands, it’s possible that sensitive information and data could be compromised. That’s why your smartphones and tablets need to be locked down and protected.
If the iphone5 were to have included this fingerprint scanner technology, it would be a game changer for smartphone security.
Most smartphones are locked with a simple four-digit PIN if they’re locked down at all. The four-digit PIN is better than nothing, but it’s certainly not the most secure option available. iOS devices have an option to require a more complex alphanumeric passcode, which would be much more difficult to guess in most cases.
Android added an ability to unlock the mobile device using facial recognition. Facial recognition can’t be guessed or cracked in the same way a password can–only you have your face. However, that isn’t entirely true. If you happen to have a reasonable headshot photo of the individual, you can just hold your picture up to the phone and unlock it.
You can’t do that with a fingerprint, though. And, the fingerprint authentication can be extended beyond simply unlocking the device itself. If developers have access to the fingerprint scanning capabilities through an API, or if the smartphone OS has an ability to store credentials and passwords in a sort of locker that is accessed via the fingerprint, then the fingerprint becomes a more secure means of accessing apps and other sensitive information on the device as well.
Improving the method of authentication will help prevent unauthorized access to data should the smartphone be lost or stolen. It’s important that you don’t rely only on locking the device, though. You also need a cross-device security platform in place to guard against malware and protect your data from other malicious attacks
The rumours surrounding fingerprint scanner access to smartphones’ have generated a hugely positive reaction which suggests the idea that this is the next step for smartphones. It seems reasonable to assume that Apple didn’t spend $360 million for a biometric company takeover if it doesn’t have any use for the fingerprint scanning capabilities it’s known for….
ievo are looking forward to seeing how this industry will change over the next year!
Back in January we reported to you that the first UK citizen was to have a bionic arm fitted after he lost his natural limb in Afghanistan. This time around, a UK citizen has had a bionic eye fitted having been blind for 20 years. The pioneering surgery plants a 3mm microchip into the back of the eye which will allow the patient to distinguish shapes and in time, he could even be able to recognise faces.
The science behind bionic eye
The surgery involves inserting a fine cable through the layers of the eyeball to place the chip on an area of the retina the size of a pinhead. The chip is connected to a power source implanted under the skin behind the ear.
The experimental “bionic eye” reacts to light sending an electronic signal that is picked by the optic nerve and processed by the brain into an image. The treatment could partially restore the sight of thousands of sufferers of a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, which causes the photoreceptor cells at the back of the eye to deteriorate.
Although not yet an existing treatment in the UK, if this case proves successful it could become more popular. However it only helps people with retinitis pigmentosa, an inherited condition that affects 25,000 British families and is not suitable for diseases that affect the optic nerve, such as glaucoma.
Perhaps this signifies the beginning of revolutionary medicine which sets to change the lives around the world.
ievo manufactures access control systems for the security market, specialising in fingerprint biometrics utilising the revolutionary multi-spectral imaging technology.
Today we celebrate 100 days until the Olympics and to commemorate biometric logging for Nigerian Olympians has commenced. The project began last week at Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.
In his welcome address, British Deputy High Commissioner, Peter West said that the London 2012 Games – and this summer – will be a proud moment for Britain “We will be staging what we’re determined will be the best Olympics ever” Peter added that the Deputy High Commission was at the Stadium to provide biometric facilities to those Nigerian Olympic athletes who train at the venue and to accompanying officials from the Nigerian Olympic Committee.
He also added that he wanted to make the biometric device as straightforward as possible which will help speed up the processes for Olympians and their families when they arrive to the UK for the games in late July.
We have already discussed the biometric impact for the Olympics in another blog post, as news broke that fingerprint recognition and facial scanning will be used to identify those coming into the country especially for the games.
ievo manufacture security products, namely fingerprint readers for internal and external environments. To view the ievo fingerprint scanner range visit www.ievoreader.com
