Image from HID Global website

Speed and authentication are some of the issues of biometrics solutions in the past. There were issues with fingerprint recognition and fingerprint reliability. This is what HID Global, a secure identity products manufacturer, addressed with the introduction of its new product, the iClass SE RB25F fingerprint reader.

According to Nelson Fung, product marketing manager of HID Global, fingerprint is still the often-used and preferred type of biometrics technology in the Asia Pacific (APAC). Facial recognition, in spite of its popularity among the latest smartphones, is still way far behind.

HID Global addressed the issues of the fingerprint (un)reliability with its Lumidigm multispectral imaging technology with the iCLASS SE® RB25F fingerprint reader, which has been globally patented.

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“The first thing we want to cover is reliability,” said Fung.

There are many factors that make it difficult for biometrics devices to read fingerprints and these include temperature, dirt, and sometimes genetics. It is not only skin-deep as the technology is developed to recognize the surface and sub-surface of the skin regardless of the condition the registered finger is in.

Fung explained that multispectral imaging works by capturing a trimmed down range of wavelengths from a specific spectrum. It has special cameras that distinguish wavelengths through the use of filters. It is able to read images beyond the skin or what might have covered the skin.

HID Global also emphasized the level of security using biometrics as opposed to using passwords. Passwords can be guessed but fingerprints are unique to each individual. The company also offers two-factor and multifactor authentication for organizations that demand a higher level of security than the others.

“In APAC, banking and the financial sectors are HID Global’s strongest market,” said Alex Tan, Sales Director, ASEAN, Physical Access Control Solutions with HID Global.

The government is also one of the industries that require a high level of security that prefer to use biometrics in its offices.

In the Philippines, Ian Marcos, Christian Marcos, HID Global’s regional sales manager in the Philippines, said the company is looking at casinos in addition to the call centers, which so far is one of its strongest markets in the country.

Security administrators can download the complimentary HID Biometric Manager, an on-premise software tool for configuring and managing one or many iCLASS SE RB25F readers. Built on a server- and browser-based client architecture, the HID Biometric Manager is ideal for enrolling users’ fingerprints, assigning access rights and conducting many other functions.