printer friendly version

Iris recognition - debunking the myths

For thousands of years people have been using methods to identify themselves. Bronze Age amulets and the military passwords of Roman centurions are early examples. Needless to say, since these early times, people have also been hiding their true identity with disguise, false documents and by covering their tracks.

Of course, now the planet's population has passed through the 6,5 billion mark, and the information age is permitting people to undertake remote electronic transactions, the need to identify individuals differently is universally recognised.

Today, IDs, PIN numbers and login passwords are used as personal identification methods. Put in simple terms, authentication of identity is typically achieved by checking something you have (a card), something you know (a password) or something you are (a fingerprint or photo).

Biometrics is emerging as the most effective means of such identification. Biometrics is anatomical characteristics that are unique to an individual such as fingerprints, face, iris, hand geometry and DNA. A biometric that is accurate, unchanging and fast is needed to provide authorised individuals specific rights and capabilities like logging on to a computer application, gaining access to a physical location or for personal identification.

Iris recognition

Iris recognition provides such a solution and is fast becoming a biometric of choice in large-scale database environments with Holland, Canada, USA, Japan, UAE, Germany, all using the technology for border access control. Morne Breedt, technical manager of local iris recognition agency, eyedentity, provides some answers to frequently asked questions.

Q: How accurate is iris recognition technology?

A: Iris recognition is based on the most mathematically unique biometric - the iris of the eye. The human iris is absolutely unique, even between twins or an individual's right and left eyes. A number of objective tests and evaluations over the last eight years have identified iris recognition technology as the most accurate biometric. The most recent of these evaluations was reported by the United Kingdom's National Physical Laboratory in April 2001.

Q: How does the recognition process work?

A: The iris recognition process begins with video-based image acquisition that locates the eye and iris - the coloured portion that surrounds the pupil. Typically, no video image of the iris is retained; instead the eye pattern is converted into a 512 byte record. The IrisCode is hashed and encrypted as a security measure.

Q: Are there any risks?

A: Iris identification uses standard video cameras - the same kind you would use to videotape your family - to take a picture of the iris of your eye. It does not use lasers and therefore has none of the inherent risks associated with lasers.

Q: What about changes to the eye?

A: Iris recognition can also account for those ongoing changes to the eye and iris that are defining aspects of living tissue. The pupil's expansion and contraction, a constant process separate from its response to light, skews and stretches the iris; the algorithm accounts for such alteration after having located the boundaries of the iris.

Q: Why iris recognition?

Iris recognition has the highest accuracy level of all biometrics with a near 0% False Accept Rate (FAR) and ½% False Reject Rate (FRR). It provides fast, scalable authentication in large database environments. Typically, identification time averages about two seconds. The iris is stable over life from age one until death. Iris recognition is non-invasive and avoids any physical contact with the devices, and is thus a fail-safe biometric suitable for authenticating individuals using computer systems, the Internet or requiring physical access to a facility.

Q: Do any industry standards exist for iris recognition?

A: The only industry standard that is publicly available is BioAPI. This is an application programming interface standard. eyedentity, through its partner, Iridian Technologies, is committed to the principles of notice, access and choice as advocated by the International Biometric Industry Association (IBIA), of which Iridian is a founding member. The IBIA are proactive in developing public policy for the ethical use of all biometric technology.

Q: What are the privacy issues associated with biometrics?

A: Protecting the privacy of citizens is a crucial concern for eyedentity. Iris recognition technology is strictly 'opt in'. The user will consciously elect to participate by presenting his/her eye to the camera. They must be within a capture zone, which is approximately 50 cm away from the camera. Therefore, the technology cannot work without the explicit cooperation of the end-user.

Share this article:

Further reading: