02 August, 2005
category: Biometrics, Government, RFID
“A cross-correlation algorithm that assesses the degree of similarity between the base-line scan and the new scan allows the paper’s identity to be verified. The odds of two pieces of paper having similar patterns are greater than 1,000 to one.
These fingerprints raise the possibility of securing documents without resorting to controversial solutions like RFID tags. In the future, every passport, driver’s license and birth certificate could be scanned for its unique speckle pattern by the issuing agency. Portable scanners at border crossings or police stations would read the pattern on the document in question and match it to the baseline database. A standard desktop PC could check 10 million entries per second.”