Biometric Facial Recognition

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Face Recognition - advantages & disadvantages of a new practice

Inevitably, science fiction portends to the future, and we have all seen technologies that were once manifest only in the realm of the imagination make their way into our every day lives. The idea that we would have space ships that could take us to the moon was a mere fantasy a hundred years ago, and the robotics that are in use today were the stuff of cheesy move reels in the fifties. The possibility of genetically engineering a cloned animal would have seemed implausible just a couple decades ago.

Biometric technology is one of these futuristic innovations that have become a reality in the present, and biometric face recognition is one of its most interesting uses. Most of us are familiar with biometric devices like fingerprint locks, and facial biometrics are even more complex and fascinating. Computers can scan a subject's facial features and a store a geometric model of the details that are for all intents and purposes unique, but with some statistical margin for error (depending on the sophistication of the particular biometric face scanning device).

The ways that this face recognition can be utilized are many and varied. Going back to the science fiction analogy, if you use your imagination, some pretty amazing things are possible. For instance, many of us have our photographs on our ATM cards so that if we were to lose them or have them stolen nobody would be able to use them. An ATM card is scanned by a reader, and that reader accesses your account information. What if a biometric face reader was to scan your features as you passed through the grocery line, and in so doing, access your account and deduct the grocery bill from your balance without you having to present a card or say a word? At the moment this may be a little bit too costly to implement universally, but biometric facial technology makes it possible.

Facial Biometrics provide useful Law Enforcement Tools

Facial biometrics also provide incredibly useful law enforcement and homeland security tools. For instance, allowing access to sensitive areas to approved parties without requiring them to carry a magnetic card, or even take the time to touch a fingerprint reader, is efficient and convenient. Additionally, biometric facial recognition devices can also identify fugitives who law enforcement agencies are trying to apprehend. So when one of the bad guys is trying to board a plane or even make a withdrawal at the bank, he or she may find themselves in custody before they know what hit them.

The positive side of face recognition technology is clear, but there are some negatives as well. It is not as accurate as fingerprint or iris scanning, and current biometric facial recognition systems can be compromised by variances in lighting, and clearly, masks throw a fly into the ointment as well. So facial biometrics have not reached the point of perfection, but without a doubt, this technology is looming, and it may become a routine part of the way we go about our business in the very near future.

The Biometric Face