Do the eyes have it? – maybe not on their own

Manchester Airport has announced a trial of retinal scanning for ‘volunteer’ passengers checking in. The retinal scanning technology is proven and is difficult to fool, although eye diseases can change the retina over time. The issues up for discussion are is it too intrusive, having a light beam shone into your eyes for ten seconds or so could be for some people, is it too expensive and what other systems should be in place to work with retinal scanning?

Fingerprint biometrics are being used in airport security and access control applications all over the world and could be a useful compliment to retinal scanning and other biometric human recognition checks. But, you may believe that fingerprint biometric systems are too easily duped? Perhaps in the past they have been ‘fooled’ as a story from Japan in early 2009 suggested. In that case some ‘special tape’ had been used by a woman with a false passport and a track record of illegal entry to the country to get through immigration controls which included a fingerprint scanner. This may suggest the sensor technology in the Japanese system was not up to scratch.

The new Connective Touch range of fingerprint scanning solutions offer a capacitive sensor that will pinpoint the ridges and valleys of the skin which it reads and then verifies down to four layers below the skin. The company believes that it will still produce a reliable fingerprint scan even if the fingerprint has outer damage from burn scarring etc. Its sensor contains tens of thousands of small capacitive plates, measuring extremely weak electrical charges that are created by the finger. This non-optical measurement generates and stores a 3D fingerprint template which has to be exactly matched by the person who created it. It can’t be fooled by fake fingerprints according to Connective Touch developers Global Bio Tec.

Detection deterrent?

Why at a time when terrorists around the world are exploiting the latest technology to conceal their bombs and identities are we still debating about bringing in the full array of biometric scanning technology? Is it cost, the erosion of personal freedoms, or the poor track record of fingerprint, retinal and facial scanning systems? The answer could be a combination of all three points - what do you think?


The first fingerprint bureau was established in Calcutta, India, in 1897, to help classify and organise criminal records and police and security forces have used finger prints extensively to track and capture undesirables ever since. The essential element to a practical and accurate finger print recognition system, according to Devi Sohanta founder of the Biometric Centre of Excellence and MD of British fingerprint biometric pioneers Global Bio Tec, is the quality of the sensor used in the device. It needs to take an accurate and deep penetrating scan of the finger to be as accurate as possible and prevent attempts to fool it.


Economies, major companies and millions of us rely on air travel and transport for wealth generation and our daily bread. We know the consequences of aircraft being hijacked, blown up or deliberately crashed have global and very personal consequences. Can we afford to sit on our hands when we should be holding them up for scanning to make airports, air travel and air cargo more secure?


The track record of biometrics systems for fingerprint identification has been blotted by cheap products that have failed to deliver on their promise. The Promise for airport, air travel and air cargo security from fingerprint biometrics is significant from uncovering the false identities of terrorists, deterring their attempts to travel right through to controlling the access of airport employees from land-side to air-side secure areas. Our finger prints provide a confirmation of our identity which is unique and can't be copied or destroyed. It really is elementary!
www.globalbtec.com