Bach Seat

Followers of the Bach Seat know biometrics have a limited value in replacing passwords. Despite the technical flaws another round of biometric hype is running across the intertubes. The latest round of biometric hype is coming from Samsung (005930). In the hope to revive their brand, they are on the verge of releasing the Galaxy S8. The Samsung Galaxy S8 includes the ability to use facial recognition software to unlock your brand new phone. CNet says that this idea “sounds awesome.”

However, this awesome will lower the bar for your security. CNet reports that the video blogger MarcianoTech demonstrated a pre-release version of the Galaxy S8 is seen being unlocked using just a photo (at the 1:09 mark). To their credit Samsung has acknowledged that the Face Unlock feature is more for convenience than for security, and it cannot be used for mobile payments. Weak facial recognition software is a convenience for the user, it could also be very convenient for others, too.

The troubles with Face Unlock date back to 2011 when SlashGear reported that Google admitted the security system can be fooled by a picture of you and not the real thing. CNet reports that a Carnegie Mellon University spin-off in Pittsburgh, PittPatt, developed  that Face Unlock which was later acquired by Google (GOOG).

Just to make Face Unlock and similar facial recognition systems more dangerous, the Guardian reports during recent testimony before congress the FBI admitted that they store about half of all adult Americans’ photographs in a facial recognition databases that can be accessed by the FBI. About 80% of photos in the FBI’s network are non-criminal entries, including driver’s licenses pictures from 18 states including Michigan (pdf) and passports.

The FBI first launched its advanced biometric database, Next Generation Identification, in 2010, augmenting the old fingerprint database with further capabilities including facial recognition. The bureau did not tell the public about its newfound capabilities nor did it publish a privacy impact assessment, required by law, for five years.

Unlike with the collection of fingerprints and DNA, which is done following an arrest, photos of innocent civilians are being collected proactively. The FBI made arrangements with 18 different states to gain access to their databases of driver’s license photos.

“I’m frankly appalled,” said Paul Mitchell, a congressman for Michigan. “I wasn’t informed when my driver’s license was renewed my photograph was going to be in a repository that could be searched by law enforcement across the country.” So anyone with a photo of you, or maybe even just access to your Facebook photos, could potentially access your phone.

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There are two important reasons why biometrics don’t work, and why the old-fashioned password is still a better option: a person’s biometrics can’t be kept secret and they can’t be revoked.

People expose their biometrics everywhere – they leave fingerprints behind at bars and restaurants, their faces and eyes are captured in photos and film, etc. There’s no real way to conceal your eyes, face, or fingerprints from the world. As far back as 2002, research led by Japanese cryptographer Tsutomu Matsumoto. Matsumoto and his team used clear gelatin to make artificial fingers that they then used to fool fingerprint scanners. The gelatin-based finger was successful in fooling all 11 devices tested. I wrote about spoofing fingerprints in 2016.

However, it’s the second problem with biometrics that is the really big one: once a person’s biometrics have been compromised, they will always be compromised. Since a person can’t change their fingerprint or whatever biometric is being relied upon, it’s ‘once owned, forever owned.’ That is biometrics’ major failing and the one that will be hardest to overcome.

Part of the reason is that it’s silly to only have 10 possible passwords your whole life (20, if you count toes) but unlike a password, once a biometric is compromised, it is permanent. Today, if your Twitter account gets hacked, you just change the password – but if you are using a biometric, you will be stuck with that hacked password for the rest of your life.

With the release of Windows 10, Microsoft (MSFT) stepped up their biometrics game. CNet reports that with the recent improvements in Windows 10 biometric security includes facial recognition software. Besides facial recognition, Windows Hello also supports fingerprint and iris recognition to secure your PC. For facial recognition though, Microsoft has partnered with chipmaker Intel (INTC) for its RealSense 3D camera tech to get the job done. RealSense uses depth-sensing infrared cameras to track the location and positions of objects, which Microsoft then uses to scan a person’s face or iris before unlocking the device in question.

To further push the biometrics agenda, more than 200 companies including Microsoft, Lenovo, Alibaba, and MasterCard have already come together to form a partnership known as the FIDO (Fast Identity Online) Alliance. Founded in 2013, FIDO was set up to address issues such as a worldwide adoption of standards for authentication processes over the Web to help reduce reliance on passwords.

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.