Selfies might be associated with millennials messing around but they could soon be setting a new standard for security, says the CEO of biometric cyber security company FaceTec.
Its ZoOm software, which utilises AI and machine learning, can be integrated into any customer app and provide secure access to it via 3D face authentication. It can also detect whether the subject is alive or not.
Kevin Alan Tussy told BusinessCloud that eventually biometrics such as this will replace passwords, but first they must offer all the benefits of a password-based system and more.
“Biometrics must be cheap, portable and universal and also add more benefits like being impossible to forget and offer virtually spoof-proof security,” he said.
“We believe ZoOm has achieved all of these requirements and is poised to become the de facto standard in face authentication worldwide.”
For anyone unsure whether they would feel comfortable using selfies as a method of logging in, Tussy says this won’t be an issue.
“Pretty much everyone who has purchased and uses a smartphone has taken a selfie, understands the concept and is comfortable with it, regardless of age,” he said.
“People who aren’t comfortable with selfies or publishing photos of themselves on sites like Facebook, typically don’t use smartphones or apps.
“Those who do are a self-selecting group who are open to new biometric technology and the security and convenience it provides.”
ZoOm can be used nearly anywhere there is a need for secure access to confidential or sensitive data, or where there is restricted physical access, so the company is also looking at how the tech could help in areas such as the refugee crisis.
“Refugees flee from troubled countries with next to nothing, including ways to verify their identities,” said Tussy.
“Without that ability, it is nearly impossible for them to do many things most of us take for granted, like get work or a bank account.
“A highly portable biometric like ZoOm implemented on an inexpensive mobile device can help rebuild identities, begin to create wealth and allow refugees to start new lives with increasing credibility.”
While passwords have been challenged as the most secure way of logging into personal devices for some time, Tussy says face authentication is starting to become a clear leader in the area.
“With the rapid rise in mobile came increased security challenges but also biometric opportunities,” he said.
“Face Authentication, specifically, held the most promise for solving these access security problems.
“We recognised this as an opportunity to solve a massive problem and designed ZoOm to provide unmatched levels of personal security and convenience for users on the devices they already own, even the very low-cost devices.
“Mobile fingerprint and 2D facial recognition are actually just convenience features and are highly vulnerable to spoofs. Fingerprint sensors have usability limitations when it is cold or humid, and cannot be used with gloves.
“Iris scans can have issues when used in direct sunlight, and 2D face recognition systems often have challenges with dark conditions and can lock users out when they change hair, makeup or put on glasses.”
ZoOm’s technology maps and processes thousands of face data points and millions of pixels from up to 30 video frames and compares them in milliseconds.