TECH5 Partners with Pepper & Ink for Mobile ID Solution

Biometrics News – Facial Recognition

TECH5 has teamed up with Pepper & Ink Technologies to release a new ID storage app that eliminates the need for a physical identity card. The mobile app blends Pepper & Ink’s compression technology with TECH5’s facial recognition tech to encode identifying information – including face biometrics – as a 2D barcode that can be printed or displayed on a screen.

In addition to basic demographic information, the barcode will contain a biometric template and a face image, as well as a unique digital ID that is issued through the app. The information is encrypted, and can only be decrypted with the application’s keys. The integration of facial recognition gives Pepper & Ink’s barcodes an extra layer of liveness detection, with the face image allowing for secondary visual verification on top of the biometric template.

The new app can function offline, giving owners access to their IDs in remote areas and enabling secure verification in the absence of an internet connection. According to TECH5, the solution is ideal for government-issued documents, including National ID programs and birth certificates. It can also facilitate online payments and the distribution of healthcare services.

“This solution is a cost-effective alternative to smart cards,” said TECH5 Chairman and Co-Founder Rahul Parthe. “Now customers can easily access their data using only a smartphone and at the same time be absolutely sure that their ID information is protected.”

The partnership advances TECH5’s pioneering efforts to create more inclusive national ID programs. The company recently became the first ABIS vendor to integrate with the open-source MOSIP platform.

In the meantime, more and more countries are beginning to implement their own mobile ID platforms. The French government is currently preparing to launch the Alicem app, while India continues to refine its expansive Aadhaar system.

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October 9, 2019 – by Eric Weiss