HOW BIOMETRICS IS ENHANCING COMPANIES’ SECURITY THROUGH IDENTITY PROOFING

Over the past few years, there have been a lot of technological advances, but none more so than in the field of biometrics. Biometric technology is offering the best way for any individual or a company to keep their profiles and their data safe. This technology recognizes people based on their finger prints, iris, gait, or other traits. It is becoming ubiquitous and is being widely used for authentication and recognition purposes.

Biometric technology is certainly not something new, but it is far more comprehensive than anyone ever imagined. It is providing a higher level of security and protection than it was given credit for at one time. It is providing companies as well as individuals more advantages than traditional security measures.

IDENTITY PROOFING IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR

Before biometric technology was introduced, companies used to authenticate new personnel by asking them to verify their identity with official documents so that they can verify whether a person who has come to join or come for an interview is actually who they say they are. Those documents would be used to verify the employee and establish trust. This is what used to be called “identity proofing”.

Now with biometric technology in the field, things are being done very differently. Now you can use different modalities of biometric technology to find out whether your employee is who he says he is.

INSIDER FRAUD

Insider fraud is something that has been causing government and private institutes a lot of grief over the last few years. According to a study, insider fraud causes the global economy somewhere close to $3 trillion each year. More than half of all the bank frauds and embezzlement cases are due to insider fraud. When a company is hiring an employee, they can easily forge documents and fake identities to cover up sensitive information like previous criminal records and such.

These are the reasons why businesses are relying more and more on biometric technology to verify and authenticate an employee’s identity. This technology also makes sure that new employees won’t be able to jeopardize the company, its employees, vendors or any else related.

WHAT CAN BIOMETRIC TECHNOLOGY OFFER

This technology adds additional layers to the protection of a company through proper authentication and verification of the employees. We all know that modalities like fingerprints, face, iris, and others are unique to each person and cannot be replicated, unlike what movies would have us believe. Since these modalities are an inherent part of us, they cannot be stolen or misused in any way. They are permanent and unique to every one of us. That is the reason why biometric technology makes it hard for a fraudster to use these modalities and impersonate a person.

HOW IS IDENTITY PROOFING ACHIEVED

Identity proofing that is based on biometric modalities is achieved by scanning the fingerprint, iris, face or any other modality of a person and then comparing it with the image that is already on the company’s database. The database contains images that have already been uploaded of all the people who have the authority to enter the building or access a software. If the current scan is exactly like the one saved in the database, the system will allow entry, or if there is any discrepancy, the system will immediately alert the authority. This technology is not only constricted to building entries, it can be used anywhere you want. If you have a server room and only a handful of employees, usually from your IT department, are allowed in it, you can use biometric verification to make sure that no one else accesses the room and the confidential and sensitive data on the servers. You can use a document security software to ensure that the company’s confidential documents can only be opened by the person who has the authority and by no one else. You can do that with your printing machines and a whole lot more.

Employers can also use biometric technology to find out if a new hired employee has any criminal record by comparing it with the FBI database. If any such record is found, the system will immediately alert the employer and they can take the necessary action.

INDUSTRIES THAT CAN BENEFIT FROM IDENTITY PROOFING

To put it very simply, any industry that is vulnerable to identity fraud or crime can benefit from this technology. Some industries that have accepted identity proofing are:

Banking, Financial, and Insurance Institutes and Companies

Banks do a complete background check on an individual that comes to them for any purpose. If they integrate their security systems with biometric-based identity proofing, they can save a lot of their time and effort in validating a person’s identity and prevent identity fraud.

Healthcare Institutes and facilities

Healthcare facilities need to ascertain the identity of the doctors, nurses and other staff that work there to make sure that the patients are getting the care that they deserve. For their own security and for the protection of the patients, these facilities can easily integrate identity proofing with their current system and ensure authentication.

Transportation, Retail, Exploration and other industries

Whether its transportation, retail, or any other field, companies need to be very particular about who they hire and who the customers are. Especially in the retail industry, identity fraud is rampant. This fraud can easily be controlled and diminished by using biometric-based identity proofing. This way companies will be able to trust their employees, vendors, and customers with higher confidence.

Biometric technologies have so much more to offer to an individual or an organization. With more time, new and better uses will come to the front and the companies who value their security and protection will jump on the bandwagon and ensure that their confidential and sensitive data is safe and secure.