Austrian hospitals get fingerprint biometrics

At the Krankenhaus der Barmherzigen Brüder in Graz, placing an index finger on a sensor will in future take over from remembering a password: Siemens IT Solutions and Services is installing a biometric solution at the Austrian hospital for staff to log onto the hospital information system via fingerprint. The system is not only more secure, but also more convenient.

The user name and password no longer need to be entered in the internal medicine department of the Graz hospital in Marschallgasse. Nurses and doctors log onto their computer using their fingerprint. To this end, Siemens IT Solutions and Services has integrated the Siemens ID Center software into the existing Citrix-based hospital system and installed PC mice with a sensor. Users register once by placing both index fingers on the fingerprint sensor of the mouse. To subsequently log on and unlock the screen saver, or access specially protected data, users then simply tap the sensor and are logged on in less than a second.

Siemens developed both the algorithm that encrypts and stores the fingerprint features, and the software that allows central management of all the fingerprint files and verification of access authorizations. This is especially important at places in the hospital where staff share a PC: depending on what their tasks are, they each have different authorizations in the hospital IT system.

After initial tests in Graz, Siemens is installing the solution in a further eight hospitals and three nursing homes run by the Barmherzige Brüder. Around 3,500 members of staff in medicine and medical care will then have more convenience and, most importantly, more security - without any password.

Siemens IT Solutions and Services is an internationally leading provider of IT solutions and services. It covers the entire IT service chain from a single source, from consulting to system integration, right through to the management of IT infrastructures. In addition, Siemens IT Solutions and Services extends the range of offerings of the other Siemens Groups to include software developments and IT solutions. With its comprehensive know-how and industry-specific knowledge, Siemens IT Solutions and Services provides measurable added value for its customers. Founded in January 2007, the new Siemens Group employs around 43,000 people and posts annual sales of about 5.4 billion euros, of which some 70 percent are generated outside of the Siemens group. http://www.siemens.at/it-solutions

Siemens Biometrics Center

The Biometrics Center is part of Siemens IT Solutions and Services. Siemens IT Solutions and Services has been playing a major role in the development of Siemens fingerprint technology since 1991. The Biometrics Center was formed in 2005. The bundling of biometrics competences shall successfully introduce the Siemens Groups to the attractive and promising biometrics market. The Biometrics Center has a broad range of experience at its disposal to design, project and implement biometric solutions and can rely on proven products and product components.

Detailed information can be found at http://www.siemens.com/biometrics.