Biometric Security Explained: Beyond Fingerprints and Popular Myths

In this episode of the Unscammable Podcast, we're exploring biometrics - the sci-fi-like tech that uses your unique biological traits like fingerprints and your face to verify your identity. We also bust Hollywood myths (no, dead fingers can't unlock phones), discuss why biometrics matter for your digital security and address the very real privacy concerns. Let's dive in!

Author

Linda Fawcus
December 04, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 14 minutes

EPISODE • Biometric Security Explained: Beyond Fingerprints and Popular Myths

Hey, all. Linda here. The voices you’re about to hear sound remarkably human, despite being generated by artificial intelligence. While they occasionally mispronounce words and say "like" and "right," too much, listening to them, you’d swear you were eavesdropping on two people chatting in a podcast studio. It's truly astonishing how far this technology has come. And to think where it’s going. Oh, boy.

Just tap the play icon to listen to this conversation (about 10 minutes). It’s a pretty cool experience.

Key Takeaways From This Podcast

Here’s a quick rundown of the key takeaways from our conversation on biometric security:

  • Biometrics are growing in importance for security, providing a more secure and convenient alternative to traditional passwords, which can be easily hacked and are hard to remember.

  • We explored various types of biometrics, including:

    • Facial recognition

    • Iris scanning

    • Voice recognition

    • Gait recognition (how you walk)

    • Vein pattern recognition

    • Heartbeat recognition

    • Ear shape recognition

    • Keystroke dynamics and phone usage patterns

  • Myth-busting Hollywood scenarios:

    • Modern facial recognition systems are difficult to fool with a mask due to 3D mapping and infrared technology.

    • Fingerprint scanners use "liveness detection," making it impossible to bypass them using a fake hand or a fingerprint from a deceased person.

    • Security vs. privacy concerns: Biometrics offer stronger protection than passwords, but since biometric data is tied to your identity, it’s harder to change if compromised. However, encryption and multi-factor authentication are often used to mitigate these concerns.

FAQs

What are biometrics and how do they work? Biometrics use your unique physical traits to verify your identity. This could include fingerprints, facial features, iris patterns, or even how you walk. A biometric system captures this data, converts it into a secure digital format, and stores it. When you try to access something, it compares your new scan to the stored template—if they match, you’re in.

Are biometrics more secure than traditional passwords? Yes, biometrics are generally more secure. Unlike passwords, which can be easily forgotten or hacked, biometric data—like fingerprints or facial patterns—is much harder to replicate or steal.

What are the different types of biometric methods used? Here are some of the biometric methods possible today:

  • Fingerprint Scanning: Analyzes the unique patterns on your fingertips.

  • Facial Recognition: Maps your facial features.

  • Iris Scanning: Identifies you based on the unique patterns in your iris.

  • Voice Recognition: Identifies you through your voice's unique characteristics.

  • Gait Recognition: Analyze your walking style.

  • Vein Pattern Recognition: Maps the unique pattern of veins in your hand.

How are biometrics used in everyday life? Here’s a short list of where we are seeing biometrics today:

  • Smartphones: Unlocking devices or authenticating apps.

  • Border Control: Using biometric passports.

  • Banking: Voice authentication and fraud prevention.

  • Healthcare: Verifying patient identity for secure access to records.

What are the privacy concerns surrounding biometrics? Biometric data is linked to your identity, and unlike passwords, it can’t be easily changed if compromised. This raises concerns about data breaches and misuse of sensitive biometric information.

What steps are taken to protect biometric data? To mitigate these risks, many biometric systems use strong encryption to protect your data. Even in the case of a breach, the encrypted data would be unusable.

Can I choose not to use biometrics on my devices? Yes, most devices that offer biometrics also allow you to use alternatives like PINs or passwords. You have control over all biometric settings.

Transcript

Here’s the transcript from this episode. A little background about our podcast “hosts”. We call them Izzy and Will—not to make them more human, but to make them easier to talk about. 😉🤖

Will: Ever get tired of forgetting those passwords? I mean, it happens to the best of us, am I right?

Izzy: Absolutely, it happens to me all the time.

Will: But what if, what if your password was literally you?

Izzy: Interesting.

Will: That's what we're diving into today, biometrics, where your body becomes the key. And we've got a ton to unpack today, like how your veins could replace your ATM pin.

Izzy: Oh yeah. Or, how about, how accurate are those Hollywood movies when it comes to this tech?

Will: Okay, so, fingerprint scanning, that's pretty much everywhere these days, right? Right. It's everywhere. It's

Izzy: everywhere.

Will: But, this one article I read said that by last year, over 1. 5 billion people were using biometrics to keep their digital lives secure.

Izzy: That's wild. It just makes you wonder, what's next?

Will: Well, we're seeing facial recognition kind of taking center stage now. Really? Yeah, it's actually surpassing fingerprints in the mobile space.

Izzy: Because it's, it's considered more reliable.

Will: More reliable than our unique fingerprints.

Izzy: It's true, yeah. And it's not just about snapping a photo anymore either.

Izzy: Yeah. We're talking 3D mapping, infrared scans, things that can pick up on tiny details, like the depth of your features, even your unique heat signature. Try fooling that with a photograph.

Will: So much for those Mission Impossible heists.

Izzy: Exactly. Hollywood loves to You know, play a little fast and loose with how the science actually works. remember retinal scanning in Minority Report?

Will: Oh, yeah.

Izzy: Visually, very cool, but in the real world, iris scanning, which is what's actually being used, way more sophisticated, much harder to trick.

Will: Okay, so Hollywood's taking some creative liberties there, but what about that other movie trope, using a dead person's fingerprint to unlock a phone?

Izzy: Ah, classic.

Will: Is there any truth to that?

Izzy: So these days, most fingerprint scanners use liveness detection.

Will: Liveness detection?

Izzy: Mm.

Will: Sounds intense. What is that?

Izzy: Yeah, so it basically means the scanner's looking for signs of life.

Will: Okay.

Izzy: Blood flow, heat, even the electrical conductivity of your skin.

Will: Oh, wow.

Izzy: These are not things that a detached finger would have.

Will: So you're saying it's highly unlikely to work.

Izzy: Yeah, I mean, theoretically, maybe, possibly, if you had a really outdated system that doesn't have those liveness checks, and maybe, just maybe, if someone had unfortunately just passed. But as a general rule, it's more fiction than fact.

Will: Good to know. Okay, so let's get down to it.

Will: Why are we even going down this biometrics road? Is it really that much more secure than just using a password?

Izzy: Absolutely, and here's why. Passwords, even really strong ones, they can be guessed, they can be cracked, they can be stolen. Your unique biometric identifiers, much harder to replicate.

Will: Yeah, one article said the odds of somebody replicating a fingerprint are astronomically low, like one in billions or something crazy like that.

Izzy: Exactly, and even if somehow someone managed to pull that off, there's another layer of security in place, multi factor authentication.

Will: Multi factor authentication, okay, that rings a bell. But remind me what that is again.

Izzy: Yeah. So basically you need something you are, which is your biometrics and the something, you know, like a password or a pin to get access to whatever you're trying to get into.

Izzy: Double whammy.

Will: Double the security. Exactly. Got it. It makes sense, but it also kind of brings up the big question. Privacy. We're talking about storing incredibly personal, unique identifiers here. What's stopping this information from falling into the wrong hands?

Izzy: That is the million dollar question, and it's a valid concern.

Izzy: The good news is that many systems rely on really strong encryption to protect that data.

Will: Encryption, so even if someone got their hands on it, it'd be basically useless?

Izzy: You got it. Scrambled. Basically impossible to decipher without the right key.

Will: Okay.

Izzy: But you're right to be cautious. Understanding how that biometric data is collected, stored, and protected.

Izzy: Very, very important.

Will: This is all incredibly fascinating. We're really just scratching the surface of this biometric world. We were talking about encryption before the break and how our data is protected. But where is all this actually being used? I mean, it seems kind of sci fi, but I'm guessing it's more common than we realize.

Izzy: Oh, for sure. I mean, we've talked about smartphones, but it goes way beyond that. Airports are using biometrics for passport control, even for security checks. Right. A quick scan and you're through. Some banks are even using voice recognition for customer service and to prevent fraud.

Will: You know, speaking of airports, on my last trip, I actually used one of those biometric passport gates.

Izzy: Oh, yeah!

Will: And, I have to admit, it felt very futuristic. Right. Little strange at first, but really efficient. No more digging around for my passport, you know, while juggling all my bags.

Izzy: It's a great example of how this technology is becoming more and more integrated into everyday life. Yeah. But you hit on a key point.

Izzy: It brings up these questions about how comfortable we are with that level of integration.

Will: Right.

Izzy: And how our data is being used. You know, it's a conversation we need to be having.

Will: 100%. Okay, so we've talked about how biometrics are being used today. But what about the future? What's next?

Izzy: Well, one area that's generating a lot of buzz is behavioral biometrics.

Will: Behavioral biometrics. Okay, now we're getting really futuristic. Because

Izzy: imagine this, you're logging into your bank account. But instead of a password, the system is analyzing your typing rhythm. Right. How you move your mouse. how long you hesitate before clicking a button, all these little things.

Will: Wait, really?

Will: My typing rhythm can be used for identification.

Izzy: Exactly. Because we all, we all interact with technology in our own unique ways.

Will: Right.

Izzy: Behavioral biometrics takes all that data and builds this profile that's incredibly difficult to mimic.

Will: That's wild. It's

Izzy: like having a security system that recognizes you based on how you behave online, not just what you know.

Will: That's, that's both cool. and kind of creepy, if I'm being honest.

Izzy: Yeah.

Will: The idea that even my mouse movements are giving away information about me. It's almost like my, my digital fingerprint or something.

Izzy: It is a powerful technology, there's no doubt about that. And that's why there's such an emphasis on developing it responsibly.

Izzy: You know, we need to make sure that as these technologies get more advanced, we're not sacrificing privacy and security in the process.

Will: It's like walking a tightrope.

Izzy: Right.

Will: Balancing those potential benefits with the potential risks.

Izzy: Okay, so we've covered a lot of serious ground here. I have to admit though, I'm still a bit hung up on those Hollywood myths we were talking about earlier.

Izzy: Got time for a little more myth busting.

Will: Always. What did you have in mind?

Izzy: Okay, picture this. Oceans 12, they use a fake hand to get past a fingerprint scanner.

Will: Uh, yes.

Izzy: Could that actually work? Like we talked about, most modern scanners have that liveness detection. They're looking for the heat The blood flow, electrical conductivity, things that a fake hand, no matter how convincing, just wouldn't have.

Will: So Hollywood strikes out again.

Izzy: Yeah, I mean, they gotta keep things interesting, right? Even if it bends reality a bit. Right. But you know, what's truly amazing is how real world biometrics is actually even more fascinating. Uh, I mean, it's more fascinating than anything they dream up in Hollywood.

Will: I totally agree.

Will: We've talked about fingerprints, facial recognition, even the way we walk. It seems like almost every part of our body could be used for identification these days.

Izzy: That's true.

Will: But with all this talk about security and the future, I, I mean, is there a downside? What about the, the ethical implications of all this?

Will: It's one thing to use your fingerprint to unlock your phone. But it's a whole other thing when you think about how those same technologies could be used on a much larger scale.

Izzy: Absolutely.

Will: Maybe even without us knowing.

Izzy: Yeah, that's, that's the heart of it. Biometrics has so much potential to change everything from security to healthcare. But with that comes a huge responsibility to make sure it's used ethically.

Will: Right.

Izzy: That people's privacy is protected.

Will: It seems like we're at a crossroads with this tech. Yeah. We have the potential for these amazing advancements, but also for, you know, potential misuse if we're not careful. Right. So where do we go from here as, like, individuals? What can we do to navigate this new world of biometrics?

Izzy: Well, I think knowledge is power in this case. The more you understand about how it works, how biometric technology works, the better equipped you'll be to make the right decisions.

Izzy: You know, smart decisions about how and when you're okay with sharing your data. Don't be afraid to ask questions. If you're using a new service that uses biometrics, find out how that data is being stored, who has access to it, what security measures are in place.

Will: That's such a good point.

Izzy: Yeah.

Will: I feel like we're all so quick to just click agree without actually like Reading anything right but when it comes to our biometric data, I mean, that's really personal.

Izzy: Yeah,

Will: we need to be way more careful.

Izzy: Absolutely, and you always have a choice,

Will: right?

Izzy: You can choose not to use biometrics or to only use it for certain things that you're comfortable with

Will: So it's really about finding that balance. Yeah. Between convenience and, and security.

Izzy: Right.

Will: And being aware of kind of the trade offs.

Izzy: Exactly. And as this technology continues to change and evolve, that balance is going to be even more important.

Will: Well said.

Izzy: Thank you. This

Will: has been such an incredible deep dive.

Izzy: Yeah.

Will: Into the world of biometrics. But it

Izzy: has.

Will: And it's clear this technology is here to stay.

Izzy: 100%.

Will: It's up to all of us to stay informed and engaged as we're navigating this whole new frontier.

Izzy: Absolutely. It's an exciting time, but it's also a time to be thoughtful, have those conversations, think about the future that we want to create with biometrics.

Will: I love that. The future we want to create with biometrics. Yeah. Thank you so much for joining us on this deep dive.

Izzy: Oh, thank you for having me. I enjoyed it.

Will: It was a pleasure having you. It was so insightful.

Izzy: It's been fun.

Will: And to our listeners, as always, thank you for joining us. We'll see you next time for another fascinating exploration.

Izzy: Sounds good.

Will: Until then, keep learning, keep questioning, and keep exploring.