2014 has been a massive year in biometrics news. Since January, biometrics has been finding more and more traction in the mainstream and vertical markets, with real life deployments, major partnerships and the critical discussions that come with a huge uptick popularity.
The FindBiometrics Team was proud to be with you every step of the way. Here is a collection of notable industry news items form the past year that will help illustrate what the biometric discussion looked like in 2014.
Commerce
The area of biometric application that’s captured the attention of end users around the world has been commerce. From PayPal embracing biometric enabled payments via the fingerprint sensor on the Galaxy S5 smartphone, to Wells Fargo partnering with EyeVerify, to announcements of biometric finance innovations we’ll be using in early 2015, an argument can be made that 2014 was the year biometrics to the first major step in replacing the PIN.
Here are the big biometric news stories that kept biometrics and money at the top of everyone’s conversations all year.
Introducing On-Card Fingerprint Biometric Payments From MasterCard and Zwipe
Biometric Wearable Tech Lets You Pay With Your Heartbeat
Wells Fargo Invests in Eyeprints as EyeVerify Completes $6M Funding Round
FindBiometrics and Mobile ID World Take Biometrics to Money20/20
Apple Announces Two New iPhones, a Mobile Wallet and a Smartwatch
Crossmatch Biometric Tech Improves Security and Efficiency at Community Bank
ImageWare Systems Joins Forces with TransUnion in Pursuit of Biometric Security
Mobility
With the proliferation of smartphones continuing and the increasing versatility presented by wearable technology, biometrics has been finding new and exciting ways to authenticate people all year. In 2014 we saw major upgrades to mobile biometric software, the implementation of online authentication standards, the emergence of mobility in surprising verticals and even new modalities.
Here is how the conversation around mobile biometrics looked this past year:
Apple Puts Biometrics In the Hands of Over 10 Million Customers
Frost & Sullivan: Mobile Biometrics To Reach Maturity by 2019
New App Gives Doctors Access to Medical Records via Mobile Biometrics
EyeVerify Upgrades Eyeprint ID, Will Launch on iOS and Android in January
Bionym Changes Name as Nymi Biometric Wristband Prepares To Ship
Arki Wristband Offers Walking Gait Biometric Authentication
BIO-key Aims at Mass Markets With New Biometric Reader
Privacy
One of the more difficult topics in biometrics this year was the discussion around privacy. FindBiometrics and Acuity Market Intelligences made the controversial issue a focus of our second annual Biometrics UnPlugged event and it was a subject of a webinar we hosted. Privacy concerns have cropped up in a concerning number of areas, from the collection of voiceprints, to the FBI’s facial recognition database and even in Florida, where the state banned the collection of student biometrics.
Here are the many instances of privacy in the 2014 biometrics news:
Interview: Walter Hamilton on Florida Student Biometrics Ban
Massachusetts Lunch Lines Go Biometric Despite Parental Concerns
Privacy Alarms Go Off As Public Learns About Voiceprint Boom
Judge Weighs In On Privacy and NGI Facial Biometrics
Privacy Restrictions To Hinder Global Facial Recognition Market
An IBIA Special Webinar Presentation – Privacy and the Commercial Use of Biometrics
Law Enforcement
The FBI scored a major milestone in 2014 with the full launch of its Next Generation Identification program in September. Of course, that’s not the only way that biometrics and law enforcement were shaping the overall discussion of biometrics this year.
Here are the top biometric law enforcement stories of 2014:
Morpho Teams Up With IntegenX, Markets Rapid DNA Identification
FBI Activates Next Generation Identification System, Preserves Historical Biometrics
Witness The Power of the FBI’s Fully Armed And Operational NGI Suite
Biometrics and Mobility To Bolster NYPD Presence
Biometric Law Enforcement Comes to Canada
UK Law Enforcement Market Eager to Add Biometrics to Arsenal
Leicestershire Police Try Biometric Face Recognition For Catching Crooks
Border Control
Though one particular border control story doesn’t necessarily stand out above the rest, 2014 was notable for how much this area of application stayed at the front of the news all year. From exciting projections, to advancements in prescreening and a number of new deployments, border control was so big in 2014 we have it its own featured month.
The Global Automated Border Control Market: Forecasts & Analysis
The Global Automated Border Control Market: Forecasts & Analysis 2014 – 2018, Part 2
MorphoTrust Will Take Biometric Screening Tech to Your Office
Interview: Joseph Rosenkrantz, CEO of FaceFirst
Aruba Airport Embraces Biometrics for the People
Gemalto Scores Biometric ePassport Program in Moldova
Daon Fights Terrorism With Major Multifactor Identity Tech Contract
Interview with Mohammed Murad, Vice President of Sales, Iris ID Systems Inc.
Healthcare
There aren’t many personal records out there as in high demand by fraudsters than those that have to deal with healthcare. Where there’s criminal demand there is a demand for strong authentication. Here are some of the year’s notable stories about biometrics keeping better track of patients while protecting their most vital data.
India to Administrate Health Plan with Digital Citizenship Cards
BIO-key Brings Biometric EHR Access To Eye Care Centers
Archbold Memorial Hospital Implements Biometric Patient ID
New Delhi Medical Dispensaries To Shape Up By Using Biometric Time and Attendance
HIMSS 2014: Palm Vein Biometric Patient Management Making a Strong Case at Healthcare Exhibition
Access Control
Biometric solutions providers have been focusing on breaking down adoption barriers when it comes to access control technology, and 2014 continued that trend. Here are the stories about how biometrics are opening doors for the right people:
Intel Signs With Cognitec For Face Biometrics, Access Control
Market Update: United Kingdom Access Control
Entertech Partners With Frontier To Break Biometric Adoption Barriers
Biometric Physical Access Now a Luxury Home Feature
*
There are, of course, too many major news stories to cover in a single roundup and that’s where you come in. Is there a particular FindBiometrics news story you found particularly affecting in 2014? Share it with us on Twitter with the hashtag #FBYearInReview.
—
December 11, 2014 – by Peter B. Counter
Follow Us