Anil Jain, a professor and researcher of electrical and computer engineering at Michigan State University, spoke at the University of Southern Florida on how biometrics could be a future technology relied on to fix the heavily flawed state of currently used identification technologies, according to an Independent Florida Alligator article.

Among the technologies he cited as possible technologies that are important to understand as they will undoubtedly come into play in American’s regular lives are iris identification, fingerprint identification, voice recognition and face recognition technologies.

The Sierra Leone Ports Authority (SLPA) is beginning to register its employees for the implementation of a biometric system designed for ensuring transparency, accountability and efficiency for the ports. Among some of the specific intents behind the soon to be completed biometric database and the ensuing systems utilizing the data are a time and attendance tracker to ease payroll issues and minimize corruption and to step up security through issuing passes reflective of the biometric data.

Captain Benjamin Davies, the SLPA General Manager, is expecting the new technology to create new advantages in helping complete other critical objectives in the reform process.  

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office in Texas will be utilizing iris scanning technology to identify individuals in lieu of the standard fingerprints more commonly used thanks to a $10,000 grant from the National Sheriff’s Association, according to an Examiner article. The El Paso office is among the first 45 in the nation to be using the iris system, which connects to a nationwide network and registry to connect an individual’s iris to their identity.

by Zack Martin, Editor, AVISIAN Publications

The Biometric Consortium Conference is a good place to catch up on the latest developments and get some hands on experience with the latest technology.

Iris biometrics has always fascinated me. At my first Biometric Consortium Conference in 2002 I tested an iris camera that required me to be within an inch or so to get it to work properly. The technology has since come a long way and you can now authenticate from many feet away.

Unisys announced that its Mexican subsidiary has been awarded a contract by the Mexican Ministry of Internal Affairs and National Citizen Registry to create and manage an advanced citizen identification solution using biometric technologies. The project would create a database with iris, fingerprint and facial biometric data on up to 110 million Mexican citizens that would be used as part of the Mexican government’s larger national ID card project.

The contract, awarded to a consortium comprised of Unisys and Mexican communications company AXTEL, is worth approximately $50 million over three years, with approximately $32 million of the contract value expected to go to Unisys. Unisys will integrate the solution, provide the IT infrastructure and manage the data center hosting the solution. AXTEL will provide communications services as well as the data center facility and the service operations center.

Sagem Wireless, a developer of mobile devices and related services, announced that through a partnership with biometrics developer UPEK they will be releasing fingerprint identity capabilities to a number of mobile devices including Android-based devices. Sagem and UPEK are hoping the new offering to be integral as use of banking and other sensitive transactions over mobile devices increases.

AuthenTec, a developer of fingerprint and other biometric solutions, has announced its rejection of a bid by fellow biometrics developer UPEK for a merger, according to an Orlando Sentinel article. Officials from AuthenTec called the unsolicited proposed deal, which would have required the replacement of AuthenTec’s entire board of directors, “a highly dilutive and speculative transaction.”

Further, the UPEK bid came only a few days following a letter from AuthenTec alleging UPEK’s infringement on five AuthenTec owned patents.

Suprema, a developer of biometric solutions, has announced that its RealScan-F palm print scanner has received certification from the FBI for the agency’s Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System Image Quality Specification Appendix F standards. The certification is a big help to the scanner as it is required if it is to be used by the FBI and many other government agencies.

AOptix Technologies, a developer of iris-based biometric systems, has raised $65 million in funding from seven firms, according to a Silicon Valley San Jose Business Journal article.

The fund raising, which happened in four rounds, involved funds from Kleiner Perkins, Caufield & Byers, 3i Group plc, Clearstone Venture Partners, Lehman Brothers, DAG Ventures, Northgate Capital and Tenaya Capital. AOptix is hopeful that the funding will help drive their business receiving a high share of the projected $350 million to $560 million valued iris recognition market.

Read the full story here.  

Animetrics, a developer of three-dimensional facial recognition systems, has announced the release of an application for the Apple App Store. The app, called FaceR Celebrity, is the first of a series of applications under the FaceR moniker planned for release by the company. In addition to the FaceR series, Animetrics has also been developing higher-end systems for use by government and law enforcement.