Obviously biometric security is a hot-button topic. I happen to attend a univers

Question

Obviously biometric security is a hot-button topic. I happen to attend a university with a well known biometrics department. (Which I'm not a part of.)

My problem is, biometrics has a large caveat: it can't be changed.

Once my fingerprint has been compromised, it is no longer useful as a security measure. Realistically, we each leave fingerprints everywhere.

Now at the current time, people aren't out in droves stealing fingerprints. Arguably, however, it is not yet profitable to do so.

With advances in general technology, researchers have successfully stolen fingerprints using a high-resolution camera:PCMag Article

Theoretically that idea could be expanded to retina scans as well. (3-D printing, anyone?)

Even a heartbeat detection system would need changed if the user experienced a cardiac event.

So then, my question is: Do standalone biometrics have a place in security?

Explanation / Answer

You've asked a lot of questions in one go.

The big factor in your question is when you only use biometrics as an authentication mechanism. Typically, the biometric data is combined with other data (e.g. a password) in order to provide authentication data. In this way, fingerprints are viable because they are not the only thing a person needs.

As for the stolen database of fingerprint hashes, you are protected in that the hashes will be unique for that system. Just as passwords are hashed and salted to be unique, so would your fingerprints. If the database was stolen, then in theory, no one would be able to recreate your fingerprints.

As for changing biology over time, the typical scenario if the biometrics of a person changes (cardiac event, amputation, etc.), is that you simply reregister the info in the system. That's not a big problem. There was one prototype system that a person wore that would characterize the person's cardiac profile constantly over time, so it would slowly adjust as the person aged.

So, yes, just as a standalone password has a place in security, so does biometrics. Yes, there are challenges, but biometrics are a convenient way to bolster authentication security.

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