Do breaches open the door for biometrics?
31 May, 2013
category: Biometrics, Corporate, Digital ID
With 76% of network intrusions blamed on stolen or exploited credentials and weak passwords it would seem obvious that more needs to be done to secure these credentials and make them more difficult to crack.
The research from the Verizon 2013 Data Breach Investigations Report shows that better security is need to protect online identities and that biometrics may play a role, “Username-password combinations, for a variety of reasons, are inherently weak — at least while they are used alone. However, when used in combination with another method of identification — form factor — we can boost the strength of username-password combination and improve our online security,” according to Verizon.
Two-factor authentication with one-time passcodes is gaining popularity – Twitter recently unveiled the functionality for users after a spate of hacks. But biometric technology is also in the mix. “Biometrics – a fingerprint, an iris scan, a voice sample – offer a great deal of promise in creating an online identity system that utilizes multi-factor authentication techniques. Think of any futuristic science fiction program or movie and you will know that these concepts are not new.
Android user can used facial recognition technology to unlock handsets and banks are adopting voice recognition to authenticate consumers in call centers.
“The time is quickly approaching where the barriers preventing widespread adoption of biometrics will begin to fall. The cost of hardware is decreasing, bandwidth is increasing and processing techniques are improving. The result is a strong business case for utilizing biometrics as part of a broader scheme to validate online identities.”
See the full Verizon post here.