Biometrics

With new computers, comes new technology

Matt Crist

Issue date: 10/11/06 Section: Life

Fingerprint scanning, a type of Biometric authentication often seen in futuristic movies such as Steven Spielberg's "Minority Report," is coming to Marshall University with the replacement of computers. The question is whether Marshall will choose to use this technology for students and, if so, when.

Biometric authentication devices measure or recognize human characteristics, such as fingerprints or facial patterns, as a way of securely identifying a person.

"We have not yet tested the technology to require that," Chuck Elliot, associate director of customer services, said. "It brings up a lot of issues. There are data storage requirements. There are bandwidth requirements."

Students at Marshall are not going to see biometrics authentication in the labs as new computers replace older computers, Elliot said.

"It will be a couple more years, but at least the equipment will already be there," Elliot said.

Allen Taylor, vice president of information technology and chief technology officer, said the technology might be available for Marshall's employees before it becomes available for students.

"We are currently considering multi-factor authentication, including fingerprint biometric authentication, for off-campus or remote access to our Banner Administrative Systems for campus administrative faculty and staff," Taylor said.

Multi-factor authentication is the requirement of two or more pieces of security information in the verification process.

"Multi-factor generally takes the form of something you know, such as a password or pin number, something you have, like a credit card or digital ID, or something you are, which is biometric a fingerprint, iris scan, voice print, palm scan, etc.," Jon Cutler, director of systems administration, said. "The combination of these sources makes identity theft much more difficult, though still not completely impossible."

Taylor said the biometric technology would accommodate employees who have access to sensitive information, such as social security numbers.

"Our standard notebook computer configurations now come with both fingerprint readers and smart card readers," Taylor said. "There has not been a date set for full implementation of this authentication and there is no current project for implementation or policy in place. We would expect to establish this as part of our security review this fiscal year."

Aside from any lack of necessity, one technical obstacle that might prevent students from using biometrics is that there are too many students. It seems not everyone has a unique fingerprint, at least not unique enough for the technology on Marshall's incoming computers to detect slight differences.

"Once you have around 10,000 or more fingerprints you are going to have at least some minor problems with duplications," Elliot said.

"The disadvantage can be that there are problems with approximately five percent of the public that cannot be scanned because of the lack of having a readable fingerprint," Kent Hayes, director of clinical and administrative computing, said. "I found that to be true with more than 500 employees we had fingerprinted in our timecard system."

Hayes, who works at Marshall's medical center, has dealt with biometrics authentication personally, because in 2000 the medical center implemented a fingerprint scanning program for timecard systems and accessing of scanned medical records.

As of 2005, the medical center has completely done away with fingerprint scanning because the company making the fingerprint scanners quit making the scanners the center needed, Hayes said.

"The SDK (software development kit) was not downward compatible with their new fingerprint scanners and would require a complete rewrite of the software," Hayes said.

Michael McCarthy, assistant dean of information technology and medical informatics, said with the technology getting cheaper and more accessible, the medical center might consider bringing this technology back.

Monica Brooks, associate dean of libraries, said she supports the implementation of biometrics authentication.

"The identify theft problem is becoming worse," Brooks said. "Thankfully I have never had a problem, but I know many people who have and it's almost impossible to overcome the negative credit reports and/or other legal issues that are attached to rectifying the problem."

The library has dealt with a few instances in past years where people have tried to present themselves as someone else by using another student's identification card, she said.

"This would disallow that and protect somebody who has lost a card and prevent people from taking materials out on other accounts," Brooks said.

Matt Crist can be contacted at crist6@marshall.edu.