• Senator Schumer targets fake IDs from China

    Fake IDs have long been a problem for law enforcement agencies, but the recent discovery of counterfeit IDs from China that appear nearly identical to the real thing have lawmakers particularly concerned

  • Oklahoma woman battles against REAL ID

    An Oklahoma woman has sparked a federal controversy after she refused to renew her driver’s license; in February Beach was pulled over by law enforcement officials in Norman, Oklahoma and ticketed for driving with an expired license and she is now fighting that ticket as part of a larger campaign against REAL ID

  • U.K. airports install biometric passport readers

    Individuals with biometric passports from the United Kingdom or the European Union will now be able to use sophisticated automated e-Passport scanners at every major U.K. airport

  • Safran completes L-1 acquisition, becomes world’s biometric leader

    In the latest series of purchases by traditional defense firms seeking to diversify their portfolios, French defense company Safran recently completed its $1 billion acquisition of biometric solution provider L-1 Identity Solutions making it the world’s market leader in biometrics

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  • Portable biometric system for police officers

    Police now have a new low-cost, portable biometric tool in their arsenal to quickly and accurately identify a suspect: an Apple iPhone; using MORIS (Mobile Offender Recognition and Information System), an app developed by BI2 Technologies, police officers can now use an Apple iPhone to scan a suspect’s fingerprint or snap a photo of their face to scan their iris

  • Growing problem in Canada: stolen passports

    On average, 1,000 Canadian passports are stolen across Canada every month; in FY2009-10, 13,077 passports were stolen in Canada; by comparison, only 631 were swiped overseas; another 47,704 passports were reported lost in Canada; late next year, Passport Canada will begin distributing e-Passports to the general public

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  • Law enforcement and privacy concerns in Vancouver

    Last month, the police in the otherwise sedate Vancouver had to use tear gas, pepper spray, and flash bombs in downtown Vancouver to try to disperse angry rioters who set cars on fire, looted stores, and taunted police officers after the Canucks’ 4-0 Stanley Cup final loss to the Boston Bruins; the police wants to use facial recognition technology to identify the rioters, but privacy advocates are worried

  • Law enforcement and privacy concerns in Massachusetts

    Massachusetts has a plan: create a database which could map drivers’ whereabouts with police cruiser-mounted scanners that capture thousands of license plates per hour — and store that information indefinitely so local police, state police, federal agencies, and prosecutors could access it as they choose; privacy advocates are worried

  • U.S. troops deploy biometrics in the field

    Biometric databases in Iraq and Afghanistan are helping U.S. troops combat violent insurgents; in an ambitious move, troops have sought to capture iris scans, facial photographs, and fingerprints from men of fighting age especially those who have been detained for insurgent or terrorist ties.

  • Biometrics for Indian cabs

    Officials at India’s New Delhi International Airport will soon begin using biometrics to monitor taxi drivers; the move comes after a Saudi businessman was abducted and murdered by two cab drivers in 2008

  • New tools identify a person's expression, estimate their mood

    Biometrics company releases software that allows users to “cartoonize” photos; cartoons aside, the company announced the release of more free API (application programming interface) face detection tools: the service can identify a person’s expression as well as estimate their mood

  • Better than SecurID?

    The man who invented the two-factor authentication SecurID token has just unveiled a more secure authentication system using voice biometrics; Kenneth Weiss, the founder of Universal Secure Registry, says his latest invention is more flexible and secure than SecurID tokens as they can be used to authenticate individuals on mobile phones, payments, and cloud computing; by adding a voice biometric component, the new device offers three-factor authentication

  • Wireless fingerprint readers help police fight crime

    Using a new wireless device, police across the country are now able to quickly and accurately identify a suspect in the field; using RapID, a small handheld unit, officers can read a suspect’s fingerprint and check it against a database for any matches; if any matches are found the device will pull up the person’s real name, date of birth, gender, and race, making it more difficult for criminals to use a false identity

  • NYU hospital unveils new biometric palm readers for patients

    The NYU Langone Medical Center recently unveiled its new biometric palm readers to verify patients; using technology called PatientSecure, a biometric reader will scan a patient’s palm using an infrared light to create a unique map of their veins; this information is then stored in a database and linked to their electronic health record system ensuring accuracy and virtually eliminating the need for paperwork

  • Popeye's gets serious about fraud, implements biometric system

    Today, Sailormen, Inc., the largest Popeye’s franchise with 148 locations across seven states including Florida, Missouri, and Alabama, announced that it is deploying biometrics at their restaurants to improve employee accountability, increase sales, and reduce fraud; the Popeye’s franchise will use DigitalPersona’s U.are.U fingerprint readers to verify manager overrides and to track an employee’s hours